Syracuse volleyball’s undefeated season ends in first weekend of ACC play
By Josh Solomon | @JoshSolo29
This season, Syracuse began its 2024 season on a remarkable 12-0 winning streak in nonconference play. This came after the squad went 2-26 last season. The ‘Cuse’s win streak was its best start to a season since 2010. In the Orange’s opening weekend in ACC play down in North Carolina, the team’s undefeated start came to a sudden halt.
On Friday, Syracuse was in Chapel Hill to take on North Carolina. UNC up to that point also had a very successful start to its season with an 8-1 record. The beginning of the match was a surprise for the Orange in which the team dropped the first set. That was just the second time in 13 games SU has dropped the first set of a match this season. After that point, UNC didn’t slow down. The Tar Heels dominated the second set, scoring eight points in a row to put the squad ahead 22-7. Eventually, North Carolina took the set 25-9. Syracuse struggled to recover in the third set but put up a fight. The Orange rallied late and were even ahead 22-21 forcing the Tar Heels to take a timeout. Whatever was said in the huddle for UNC led to four points in a row and a straight-sets victory. This was not only the first loss of the season for Syracuse but also one of the quickest matches of the season. SU was outscored 75-45.
On Sunday, Syracuse finished its first ACC trip in Durham. Duke came into the game with a 5-7 record, a little different than North Carolina’s start to the season. However, the Blue Devils came out hot taking the first set 25-20. The Orange responded with resilience in the second set grabbing their first ACC winning set of the season 25-20. Middle blocker Anastasiia Nikolnikova and outside hitters Ava Palm and Skylar George were leading the squad, who each had six kills up to that point. In the third and fourth sets though, it was all Blue Devils. Duke’s outside hitter Kerry Keefe finished the match with 21 kills and 10 digs. Alongside her was middle blocker Rylie Kadel and outside hitter Rachel Richardson who combined for 21 kills. The Blue Devils won the third set 25-21 and the fourth set 25-17. Duke defeated Syracuse 3 sets to 1. Especially in the fourth set, SU looked sloppy and fatigued which head coach Bakeer Ganesharatnam took note of moving forward in ACC play.
“We have to keep our unforced errors down. This conference is really tough, it’s really competitive, and if we make too many unforced errors it’s just really tough to compete for a W.”
Even with these losses, Syracuse is still 12-2 on the season. But, this weekend leaves a question. Is SU able to compete against ACC teams? That will be answered when Syracuse hosts a ranked opponent in number 17 SMU on Friday in the Women’s Building. First serve of that match is at 7 p.m. Two days later, SU welcomes Pitt, the best team in the country. That contest begins at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
