Nov. 16, 2013
DURHAM, N.C. – The Georgia Tech volleyball team (10-18, 4-12 ACC) fell to the 13th-ranked Duke Blue Devils (24-3, 15-1) in four sets (25-23, 16-25, 21-25, 16-25) Saturday night at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Georgia Tech senior Jennifer Percy led all players with 17 kills on .268 swinging, while Chanell Clark-Bibbs added nine kills. Senior Quinn Evans and freshman Annika Van Gunst pitched in seven kills each, and Clark-Bibbs and Evans both hit above .300. Freshman London Ackermann held down the back row with 17 digs.
The Blue Devils had a trio of players in double-digit kills. Duke hit .256 compared to Georgia Tech’s .220 hitting percentage, and out-passed the Jackets 58 to 38 digs. Service errors plagued Tech as the Jackets had nine for the match to go along with five aces, while the Blue Devils tallied 13 aces to four errors.
The Jackets faced an uphill battle in the first game. Down 23-18, Georgia Tech battled back with a five-point rally capped off with three straight kills from Percy to knot the game, 23-23. A key block by Annika Van Gunst and Evans gave Tech set point and a kill down the right line courtesy of Annika Van Gunst handed Tech the 25-23 victory.
Duke jumped out to a 6-2 start in game two and never looked back. Four service errors and two serve-receive errors kept Georgia Tech’s offense off balance. Duke’s offense hit at a .464 clip with 16 kills compared to Tech’s 10 kills and a .267 hitting percentage.
The Jackets trailed by two, 8-6, in game three and worked back with four points in a row behind three kills from Clark-Bibbs to go ahead 10-8. The Blue Devils used an 8-1 run to take a 17-11 lead, but Georgia Tech regrouped with a 7-2 rally, cutting Duke’s lead to 19-18. Duke countered with four-straight and rode that momentum to a 25-21 win.
The fourth frame was a back-and-forth battle until Duke ran with a 10-9 lead and opened it to 16-10. Georgia Tech notched a match-best .304 (9-2-23) hitting percentage, but Duke’s five service aces never allowed Tech to gain momentum.
The Jackets are back in action Friday when they host Boston College at 7 p.m. The Jackets will honor their four seniors prior to the match.
For an inside look at the program, follow Georgia Tech volleyball on Twitter, @GTVolleyball, Instagram, GTVolleyball, and like the Yellow Jackets on Facebook, Georgia Tech Volleyball.
