Syracuse Still Awaits an ACC Win After 3-0 Loss at Georgia Tech
By Zac Ventola | @ZacVentola
Atlanta, GA – Syracuse volleyball (5-11, 0-7 Atlantic Coast Conference) was swept for the seventh time in its past eight games on Friday night. SU fell 3-0 at Georgia Tech (12-5, 4-2 ACC). The ‘Cuse has now lost its past 18 conference matches dating back to last season.
The Orange have struggled historically against the Yellow Jackets. SU has dropped its past nine matches against GT, with its last win coming in 2018. On Friday, Syracuse slowly unravelled throughout the match.
The first set of the evening was kept close. The Orange tied the Yellow Jackets at 15 points each, but Georgia Tech responded with a four-point run. However, the ‘Cuse fought back. SU forced GT to call timeout after cutting the deficit to just two. From that point on, it was all Georgia Tech the rest of the evening. The Yellow Jackets scored five of the final seven points in the first set to take a 1-0 lead.
Georgia Tech followed up its hot-streak to end the first set with a similar one at the beginning of the second. The Yellow Jackets raced off to an early 6-3 lead. GT right-side hitter Alida Bennour tallied three consecutive service aces to extend Georgia Tech’s advantage.
Less than midway through the second set, Syracuse outside hitter Kiernan Stamey had tallied 11 kills in the match. However, the junior quickly stalled out and did not connect for a kill throughout the rest of the evening.
Thanks in-part to Stamey’s offensive woes, Georgia Tech pulled away in the second set with a 25-19 win.
The final set of the day was one of SU’s worst in ACC play. The Orange dropped 10 of the last 12 points of the evening and was blown out in the third set, 25-11.
SU continued its season-long struggles on serve-receive. The Yellow Jackets notched seven service aces, compared to the Orange’s two. Syracuse, however, did not have much trouble getting around the Georgia Tech block. GT tallied just five blocks on the day, while SU had four.
Syracuse is yet to secure its first win of conference play. Its next opportunity to do so comes on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. at Clemson (7-12, 1-6 ACC).
For coverage of the Orange vs. Tigers and the remainder of Syracuse volleyball’s season, follow @ZacVentola and @CitrusTVSports on X.
