Oct. 16, 2012
ATHENS, Ga. – Three Yellow Jackets produced double-digits kills en route to Georgia Tech’s 3-1 (21-25, 25-21, 25-19, 25-22) victory against in-state rival Georgia at the Stegeman Coliseum in front of a crowd of 3,222 on Tuesday night.
The match marked the first time volleyball was played in the Coliseum since the 1996 Olympics and it was the Yellow Jackets’ seven-straight victory against the Bulldogs.
Senior Annie Czarnecki matched her career-high with 14 kills, added a team-best seven blocks and hit for a team-high .464 percentage. Senior Monique Mead contributed a season-high 23 kills of her own and freshman Chanell Clark-Bibbs slammed down a season-high 10 kills.
Mead had a double-double with 13 digs, joining three additional Yellow Jackets with double-digit digs including Kaleigh Colson (11), Bailey Hunter (12) and Nicki Meyer (11).
Set one was a back and forth battle until UGA took a 9-7 lead, and increased its advantage to 16-12, forcing a GT timeout. Tech went on a short 3-0 run to close within two points after the timeout, but UGA went on a 4-0 run of its own to make the score, 21-16. Georgia Tech kept working and closed the gap to 22-20, but the Bulldogs held on to win the opening frame, 25-21.
Tech trailed the first half of the second game, but worked its way out of an 8-4 deficit to knot the score, 12-12. The Yellow Jackets broke the tie and went ahead for the first time in the frame thanks to a kill by Mead on the next point.
UGA chipped away and tied the score again, 21-21. Mead slammed down a cross-court kill on the next point and served back-to-back aces to capture the second stanza.
The Bulldogs jumped out to a 7-3 lead in the third set, but an 11-6 rally propelled the Yellow Jackets ahead, 14-13. Clark-Bibbs and Czarnecki led Tech to win game three with four kills apiece.
Game four was Tech’s turn to take a quick 7-3 lead. The Bulldogs found their rhythm and went on a 6-1 run, taking the lead from GT, 12-11. There were eight tied scores and two lead changes, but Georgia Tech came out on top, out-hitting the Bulldogs .231 to .079 in what proved to be the final set.
Georgia Tech is back in action as it takes part in the ACC Sportsmanship Week with a pair of home matches against the top two teams in the league this weekend.
Friday – vs. Florida State, 8:30 p.m.
TV – FS South, Sun Sports, Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic, NESN, FS Arizona Plus, FS Prime Ticket, ESPN3
Promotion – Dig Pink: GTVB will don pink jerseys in support of breast cancer awareness. There will also be giveaways and more!
Sunday – vs. Miami, 1 p.m.
TV – FS South, FS Florida, Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic, NESN, FS Arizona Plus, FS San Diego, FS Prime Ticket, ESPN3
Promotion – Camper Day: All GTVB campers receive free admission if they wear their camper T-shirt. Fans can get autographs after the game.
