Syracuse drops matchup with Pittsburgh, 3-1

Syracuse (7-20, 6-11 Atlantic Coast) lost in four sets to Pittsburgh (21-8, 12-5 Atlantic Coast) on Friday night.

The Orange has dropped the first two sets and won the third of each of the last three matches and four of its last five. In each, it lost the fourth set. SU finished with a .182 hitting percentage and 17 fewer kills than the Panthers.

Anastasiya Gorelina lead the team with 11 kills, followed by Kendra Luckacs who had 10. Those two players were the only members of the Orange to finish with double-digit kills.

In addition to each player’s kills, Gorelina and Luckacs had 12 and 14 digs, respectively, to get double-doubles.

SU led Pitt in every major defensive category – digs, total blocks, and block assists were all greater than its opponent – but could not get the offense going for the entirety of the match.

Leah Levert had eight total blocks. Mackenzie Weaver and Santita Ebangwese each chipped in with five apiece.

Ebangwese, again, paced SU in hitting percentage with .455 but only finished with six kills.

The Orange team had no player who surpassed 22 assists and only two players had more than three. Assist numbers have been a problem all season for the Orange as they often come from only one or two players. The lack of passing in this game hurt the Orange offense, forcing the team to score far fewer points than its opponent.

Syracuse will remain at home this Sunday and face off against Virginia Tech in the Women’s building.