’Cuse Loses to Duke in Straight Sets

Sunday, October 15

Syracuse, N.Y.

1 p.m.

Syracuse University

2-16,0-8ACC

Duke

12-7,3-5ACC

Duke

Syracuse

10/15/2023 4:41:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Syracuse was swept by Duke (12-7, 3-5 ACC) (25-14, 25-16, 25-9) on Sunday afternoon in the Women's Building.

"We had goals coming into this match," said head coach Bakeer Ganesharatnam. "Unfortunately, our execution was not consistent enough. The process we are in is not an easy process. It is a long-term project; we have to be patient in order to keep growing. Our performance should have been better today, but the fact that we are not there yet shows how much work we have ahead of us."

'Cuse (2-16, 0-8 ACC) kept pace with Duke to begin the match. The Blue Devils took an early one-point lead, 4-3. After some back-and-forth, Duke strung together an eight-point run to bring its lead to 19-8. The Blue Devils punched in a four-point run late in set to up their lead to 23-10. A three-point run from the Orange showed some life, but the Blue Devils would go on to take the first frame, 25-14.

Syracuse got off to a better start in the second set, scoring the first two points of the frame including an ace from freshman Greta Schlichter. After 'Cuse took the early lead, 5-2, Duke answered with a seven-point run to steal the lead, 9-5. The Blue Devils scored a succeeding four-point run to increase their lead to 13-6. Both teams won rallies throughout the later part of the frame, but Duke ultimately closed out the second set, 25-16.

The Orange faltered in the third set, giving up the first three points of the frame. 'Cuse cut into Duke's early lead to bring it within one, 5-4, but Duke then went on a seven-point run to extend its lead, 12-4. To finish the frame, the Blue Devils went on an 8-1 scoring run to win the set and match, 25-9.

Of Note:

Freshman Zharia Harris-Waddy led the Orange offense with seven points, collecting seven kills on sixteen attacks.
Freshmen Veronica Sierzant and Mira Ledermueller combined for 21 of 24 Syracuse assists, accruing 11 and ten assists, respectively.
Junior Laila Smith was a significant contributor for 'Cuse, scoring six points including six kills on ten attacks.

Next Match:
The Orange will hit the road next weekend for matches at Miami on Friday at 7 p.m. and Florida State on Sunday at 1 p.m. The matches will have live stats available and can be streamed on ACCNX.

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