Oct. 24, 2008
RALEIGH – Talisa Kellogg hit .412 with a match-high 16 kills and Callie Miller added 11 kills while hitting .611 to lead Georgia Tech (15-5, 7-3 ACC) to its fourth-consecutive 3-0 (25-12, 25-17, 25-18) win with a sweep of NC State (9-16, 3-7 ACC) Friday night at Reynolds Coliseum.
Kellogg fell just one dig shy of a double-double and notched three total blocks to go along with her 16 kills and nine digs. Miller tallied a team-high four total blocks in addition to her 11 kills on 18 swings. She had no attacking errors in the match.
“Talisa and Callie were unstoppable tonight,” said Georgia Tech head coach Bond Shymansky.
Senior setter Allie Niekamp ran the Yellow Jacket offense, posting 31 assists in addition to four kills, two digs and two block assists, while Michelle Kandell anchored Tech’s defensive efforts with a match-high 15 digs. Sophomore defensive specialist Jordan McCullers added 12 digs against the Wolfpack.
Kellogg logged nine of her 16 kills in the opening set to help the Yellow Jackets to an easy 25-12 victory. Tech jumped out to an early 5-1 lead and pushed its lead to 13-5 before the Wolfpack called a timeout to get back into the set. NC State scored two of the next three points, but the Yellow Jackets capitalized on Wolfpack attacking errors to cruise to the 13-point win.
NC State took a 4-3 lead in the second set, but excellent serving by Alison Campbell, combined with a balanced offensive effort from Miller, Kellogg and Niekamp, helped the Yellow Jackets take a 9-4 edge. The Jackets then went on a 7-3 run to put the set out of reach and finished off the 25-17 victory with a kill by Chrissy DeMichelis. DeMichelis ended the match with eight kills, six of which came in the second set.
Kellogg and Miller combined for six kills and three block assists in the third and final set to finish off the sweep for the Jackets. The duo logged their six kills on just 11 swings and committed no attacking errors in the frame.
“We were focused despite having to make some last minute adjustments before the match,” Shymansky added. “Our team responded well with great communication and effort. We are now preparing for North Carolina and need to bring an even stronger game in that match.”
The Yellow Jackets will meet the Tar Heels at 1 p.m. Sunday in Chapel Hill. Live stats for the match can be found at Ramblinwreck.com, while fans may follow a live video broadcast of the match for a small fee by visiting www.theacc.com.
–GT–
