THE FLATS – No. 23 Georgia Tech volleyball (5-4, 0-0 ACC) fell against Georgia (8-2, 0-0 SEC) on Friday night in McCamish Pavilion after a close five-set finish.
QUICK HITS
- Tech volleyball set a new attendance record as 5,478 fans packed McCamish Pavilion to cheer on the Jackets. Friday’s crowd surpassed the previous record of 5,303 fans set in 2023, also against UgA.
- As a team, Tech displayed one of its best performances of the season as it had season high marks for kills (64), attack attempts (178), and assists (63) as well as tied its season high for digs (71).
- Mimi Mambu led the Jackets’ offense with a career high 17 kills alongside Larissa Mendes with 12 kills, and Anika Groom who also recorded a career high with 15 kills.
- Friday was the first match of the season that three Jackets recorded double digit kills.
- Mambu’s 17 kills now make her responsible for three of Tech’s top-five kill performances this season, with the others belonging to Noemi Despaigne against Ole Miss (20) and Groom also against UgA (15).
- Heloise Soares had an exception night as well as her season high 43 assists and career high 18 digs earned the junior her third double-double of the season, the fifth of her career.
- Sofia Velez marked her eighth game of the season with double digit digs with 10 digs, bringing her to 113 games recording 10+ digs out of 119 total collegiate games.
- DeAndra Pierce tied her career high for digs with three, which she originally set back in 2023.
- Freshman Danielle Tansey also recorded three digs, good for a new career high.
- Friday’s five set match was the second of the season, the first being against Bowling Green during the Stacey Clark Classic (Sept. 5).
- Set three was the longest set for the Jackets this season (29-27) despite finishing sets 27-25 and 28-26 against Ole Miss and 27-25 against Arkansas State.
Photos vs. UgA
by Danny Karnik
SET BY SET
Set 1 (GT 25 – UgA 23)
- Set one began close until Tech pieced together a four-point run to make the set 14-10. From then on, the Jackets retained the lead through to the 25-23 set one win. Regardless of UgA’s slight edge in attack percentage (.273-.256), Tech recorded 17 kills compared to the Bulldogs’ 12. Pierce and Mambu led the team with four kills apiece with Pierce maintaining a 1.000 attack percentage through the first set. Bianca Garibaldi also flashed a strong attack percentage (.667) with her two set one kills. Soares boasted a .467 assist percentage after recording seven assists on 15 attempts in addition to leading the group in digs (4).
Set 2 (GT 20 – UgA 25)
- Tech found itself trailing as what started as a tight set two turned into a 9-4 set after UgA went on a four-point run. Despite bringing the set within two points (15-13), the Jackets were unable to come back in set two. Both teams saw a lower kill count in the second set with UgA recording only one more kill than Tech (12-11). Mendes led the group with four kills on nine swings while Soares recorded a team high eight assists and four digs.
Set 3 (GT 29 – UgA 27)
- Set three was the most competitive set of the match as there were seven lead changes and the score was tied 19 times. Both teams saw one of their lowest attack percentages of the match but Mambu’s six kills in set three combined with Groom and Mendes’ four kills apiece were enough to lift the Jackets to a set three win. Soares boasted an exceptional 14 assists of Tech’s 16 total assists in set three. UgA was the first to reach set point (24-22) but Tech wasn’t done fighting yet as a three-point run brought the Jackets to match point (25-24). The Bulldogs once again were able to get to set point (27-26) but three final points for the Jackets would seal the set three win.
Set 4 (GT 19 – UgA 25)
- Tech struggled to find a response to the UgA offense in set four as the Bulldogs recorded 15 kills with a .406 attack percentage. Set three began with a five-point run that forced the Jackets to trail early. Tech was able to bring the set within two points (18-16) but was not able to claw its way back in time. All five Jackets who recorded kills in set four contributed at least two kills to Tech’s 13 kills in the set.
Set 5 (GT 10 – UgA 15)
- The final set saw the Jackets tie the match four times but never quite claim the lead. Both teams traded points until back-to-back three-point runs for UgA were broken up by a Bulldog service error (13-8). Tech would get two final points off a UgA service error and kill from Mendes but the match would finish 15-10 in favor of the visiting Bulldogs. Garibaldi and Mambu led Tech through the final set with two kills respectively while Soares notched five of Tech final seven assists.
O’Keefe Ticket Information
After selling out every match at O’Keefe Gymnasium for the third consecutive season last fall, Georgia Tech Athletics has set aside a limited number of single game tickets for each home match. Secure the hottest ticket in Atlanta before they’re gone by clicking HERE
General Admission Pricing
Adult – $15
Youth – $10
Group (10+) – $8
*Youth tickets cannot be purchased online.
The following matches still have tickets available: Clemson
Full Steam Ahead
Full Steam Ahead is a $500 million fundraising initiative to achieve Georgia Tech athletics’ goal of competing for championships at the highest level in the next era of intercollegiate athletics. The initiative will fund transformative projects for Tech athletics, including renovations of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field (the historic home of Georgia Tech football), the Zelnak Basketball Center (the practice and training facility for Tech basketball) and O’Keefe Gymnasium (the venerable home of Yellow Jackets volleyball), as well as additional projects and initiatives to further advance Georgia Tech athletics through program wide-operational support. All members of the Georgia Tech community are invited to visit atfund.org/FullSteamAhead for full details and renderings of the renovation projects, as well as to learn about opportunities to contribute online.
For the latest information on the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and at www.ramblinwreck.com.
