UNC volleyball team to test streak against Duke

They’ve won 15 games in a row, 29 consecutive games in Carmichael Arena, and are 4-0 in the ACC.

With a 15-0 record to open the season, North Carolina is making history — with the best start of any UNC volleyball team, and with the highest-ranking ever at No. 10.

The hype swarms, the chatter of their perfect season ever present.

But the athletes ignore it — that’s what they’ve been taught.

And that’s just the way coach Joe Sagula likes it as his squad prepares to host Duke tonight followed by Wake Forest Saturday.

“We really don’t talk about streaks and stuff like that. Those are things you look at after the season — they really are,” he said.

“I hope things go well, but I don’t know what will happen.”

The Blue Devils arrive in Chapel Hill with a 4-0 ACC record, as well, and a nine-game winning streak of their own. With a threatening offense that stems from a powerful front row, Sagula said it is important that his team try to simulate Duke’s tendencies as accurately as possible in practice this week.

“We know that they have three very good hitters. Their two outside hitters (Jeme) Obeime, (Emily) Sklar and their right side (Elizabeth) Campbell, are a lot of their offense,” he said.

“We’re trying to block really well — we have to block well Friday.”

He said his own attack must be balanced and utilize all of its offensive threats, not just its outside hitters.

“We want to really do a good job running our middles against them. We can’t become one or two dimensional,” he said.

“We can’t become a team that’s just setting to our outside hitters alone.”

With such a visible streak, junior outside hitter Lauren Adkins said that her team is certainly aware of what is at stake tonight and Saturday, but that the players are trying to think of what they have to gain, as opposed to lose.

“Everyone is coming at your throat — they want to be the first one to beat the undefeated team,” she said.

“I think that does come with pressure, but I think we like the pressure, too, of playing our hearts out to stay undefeated.”

It will be Kayla Berringer’s— one of two seniors — last time playing the Blue Devils in Carmichael Arena during the regular season. To date, the hitter has tallied 124 kills in 47 sets good for second-best on the team.

A wide grin split her face, her exuberance evident as she spoke about her favorite rivalry.

“I want to go beat them. I want to go beat them. That’s what’s going through my mind,” she said.

“And (I) want to beat them bad.”

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