Pitt has been one of the more consistent programs in all college volleyball for the better part of the past decade. On Friday, the Panthers will begin a quest to capture their first-ever national title with opening round play of the NCAA Tournament set to begin across the country.
Here are all the things you need to know to get you set for the Panthers run through the NCAA Tournament.
Setting the stage
Pitt’s opening round game will be on Friday night against Morehead State. The Eagles bring an 18-14 record into this season and they compete in the Ohio Valley Conference. The match is set for 7:00 p.m. and can be found on the WatchESPN application.
Looking ahead
Assuming a UMBC over Virginia type upset does not occur, the Panthers will be set to host the second round on Saturday night at 7:00 p.m. and will play the winner of Oklahoma (14-10) or UTEP (27-5).
Regular occurrence
Pitt is playing in its ninth consecutive NCAA Tournament. Prior to the arrival of head coach Dan Fisher, Pitt’s last appearance in the tournament was in 2004. Fisher has made this a yearly expectation for the program.
Trying to break through
Pitt’s standard went from simply making the tournament, to advancing pretty deep in it in recent years. The Panthers have made it to the Final Four in three consecutive seasons, but have yet to cross the barrier and play in the national title game, and that has been a clearly stated mission for this team that is not shying away from expectations.
At the top
Pitt is the No. 1 overall seed in this year’s NCAA Tournament. The Panthers took claim of the top spot in the AVCA Coaches poll earlier this season and had it on lock down ever since. Despite the dominant season, there were considerations to potentially make Nebraska the top seed. The Cornhuskers were the national runner-up a year ago, and also knocked Pitt out in the semifinal round. Should the teams meet again this season, it would be in the national championship game.
More banners
By virtue of defeating Georgia Tech last Saturday, Pitt capped off a 19-1 regular season against ACC opponents, giving the Panthers their sixth-ever ACC title. Pitt has either won or shared titles in 2017, 2018, 2019, 2022, 2023, and of course this year.
ACColades
The ACC announced its yearly awards for the 2024 volleyball season on Monday, and as you might expect, the conference champions were well represented. Head coach Dan Fisher took home ACC Coach of the Year and Olivia Babcock won ACC Player of the Year to give Pitt two of the major awards.
Rachel Fairbanks, Bre Kelley, and Torrey Stafford were all first team all-conference selections. Emmy Klika and Valeria Vazquez Gomez earned second team recognition, while Ryla Jones made the all-freshman team. All seven of Pitt’s regular starters earned some kind of conference recognition.
Impressive company
Babcock is only a sophomore and is already proving to be one of the best players in program history. The 6’4” native of Los Angeles had a highly decorated freshman campaign, as she was named AVCA Freshman of the Year as well as ACC Freshman of the Year.
On Monday, Babcock took home ACC Player of the Year honors to become just the second Panther to accomplish that feat. Kayla Lund won back-to-back ACC Player of the year honors in 2019 and 2020. Lund’s best season was in 2020, where she averaged 3.74 per set. Babock is averaging an impressive 5.4 kills per set in a truly dominant sophomore campaign.
Just down the hill
Pitt regularly plays its home matches at Fitzgerald Field House, but some of the more highly-anticipated ones end up at the Petersen Events Center. That is the site of this weekend’s game as well. Pitt is 2-0 this year at the Pete, with wins over Louisville and Penn State, giving the team some kind of familiarity with their home away from home.
Keeping things tidy
Pitt has won 29 matches this year, and 24 of them came via the sweep. The Panthers had an absurd streak to start the year, where they won their first 12 matches all via the sweep.
Bringing their A-game
Pitt’s brilliance this year is largely attributed to how well this team plays against the best competition. The Panthers own a 11-1 record this season against ranked opponents. Their lone loss came to SMU in five sets on the road, just three days after Pitt swept the Mustangs in Pittsburgh.
