Syracuse volleyball drops 5-set match at North Carolina State

Syracuse fell in five sets (25-18, 21-25, 19-25, 26-14, 12-15) to North Carolina State on Friday night at Reynolds Coliseum.

Santita Ebangwese led the way in kills with 14 while also tallying 9 blocks. Mackenzie Weaver wasn’t far behind with 13 kills. Weaver also had 13 digs, giving her a double-double. Leah Levert had 10 kills.

Syracuse (5-14, 4-5 Atlantic Coast) started strong, winning the first set, 25-18. SU led off 3-0 to start and maintained that lead throughout the rest of the set. A five-point run in the middle of the set pulled the Orange far enough ahead of N.C. State (12-9, 5-4) to win by seven points.

SU kept that momentum through the beginning of the second set, scoring four points before the Wolfpack managed to get one on the board. N.C. State went on a 5-1 run when SU was leading 11-8, tying the two teams at 12 apiece. N.C. State broke that tie with another 5-1 run, putting the Wolfpack up 17-13 on the Orange.

N.C. State dominated in the third set, but Syracuse came back in the fourth set. This was the closest of the five sets. N.C. State tallied the first three points but it wasn’t long until SU was leading 5-4. The game was either tied or had Syracuse in the lead until N.C. State broke the 16-16 tie, putting NCST up 17-16 on SU. The Orange later broke the 20-20 tie, putting it in the lead where it stayed for the rest of the set, forcing the contest into a fifth set where N.C. State would win 15-12.

The Orange next faces No. 8 North Carolina on Sunday.