UNC volleyball wins for injured player

The North Carolina volleyball team proved its toughness on Saturday night in the wake of tragedy almost 24 hours earlier.

Despite Saturday night’s 3-0 victory over No. 20 Michigan, the ACC-Big Ten Classic began on a much less triumphant note for North Carolina, who fell to Michigan State 3-1 on Friday night.

The fluctuation in momentum and the multiple mishaps ultimately cost the Tar Heels (3-6) the game against the Spartans (8-3), despite a well-fought comeback in the third set.

But the loss to Michigan State was not the one that brought tears to the Tar Heels’ eyes. Redshirt junior Hayley McCorkle tore her Achilles tendon in the third set of Friday night’s match, which will cost her the rest of the season. In 26 sets this season, she tallied 49 kills, ranking fourth on the team for kills.

“Every time I talk about Hayley,” said senior Paige Neuenfeldt, choking back tears, “It makes me cry right now.”

The Tar Heels made a huge turnaround on Saturday evening in their game against the Wolverines (10-1). Saturday’s game was about redemption and proving they have the ability to beat a ranked and undefeated team.

Everyone showed up to win, and the Tar Heels swept the Wolverines in three sets.

“I’m real proud of our team being able to turn it around in a short amount of time,” Coach Joe Sagula said. “We had a lot of doubt yesterday ... and this is going to build some confidence again.”

The Tar Heels were determined to avoid the same mistakes on Saturday that plagued them on Friday — a determination that was apparent the minute the team stepped onto the court. In addition to playing confidently, the team was playing for a bigger purpose.

They were playing for Hayley.

“Hayley is like my other half — she is my counterpart so I knew I had to step up for both her and me and as well as the team,” said redshirt sophomore Taylor Fricano, a transfer from Wisconsin. “Hayley means the world to me and I knew I had to do a lot for her.”

The team hopes this game will be a turning point as they head into conference play, which begins Friday at Virginia Tech. The focus for the Tar Heels will be learning from this victory and carrying it into the coming games.

“We’ve hit a turning point in our season where now we’re learning from this,” Neuenfeldt said. “We are going to bring that same game where everyone played great together for the rest of the season.”

Finding inspiration from McCorkle’s injury, the Tar Heels now know they have what it takes to defeat top teams — even in the face of adversity.

“I’ll just say this, what a difference a day can make,” Sagula said. “Good thing one day ends and another one starts.”

@Meg_Marenghi21

sports@dailytarheel.com