Notre Dame went back on the road snagging their first two ACC wins, sweeping Syracuse 3-0 on Friday and beating Boston College 3-1 on Sunday.
It was a much-needed bounce-back weekend for Notre Dame and first-year head coach Salima Rockwell after a disappointing homestand where they lost against Georgia Tech and Clemson.
Syracuse
Notre Dame swept the Orange in three sets to pick up their first conference win on Friday night. The sweep is a bit misleading though as it was a tight match throughout. In the opening set, the Irish won 25-21 with sophomore outside hitter Paris Thompson making the difference with 10 kills. Overall, Thompson finished with 20 kills, a career-high total for the Florida native.
The second set saw the two teams closely matched early until a 7-0 Notre Dame run gave the Irish some breathing room at 13-7. After a timeout, the Orange responded with a run of their own to close the deficit to just one point at 14-13. From there, the teams traded blows, but Notre Dame was eventually able to close it out. A Thompson kill gave the Irish a tight 25-23 set victory.
The final set was close throughout with six ties and three lead changes, but eventually, the Irish were able to separate with a 4-0 run led by the service of junior libero Hattie Monson. On match point, it was Thompson who stepped up once again with the winning kill to give Notre Dame the final set 25-20.
Boston College
It was a tight first set that went down to the wire. Boston College had the late lead at 24-21, but Notre Dame fought off three set points to tie it at 24 and extend the set. The teams traded points until a kill from freshman outside hitter Avery Ross made it 28-27 before an attack error from BC gave the Irish the two-point win in the first set.
The second set saw the Irish get off to a slow start, going down 1-6 early but a timeout from Rockwell seemed to turn the tide. They fought back to tie it at 11-11 and eventually take the lead. It was a close set throughout but four straight points at the end gave Notre Dame another set victory at 25-21.
The third set was never close as BC got off to a quick start and pulled away with an 8-0 run to win it 25-13 to avoid the sweep. From there, the momentum shift was evident as the Eagles got out to a 16-8 lead. But with Monson serving, Notre Dame went on a 7-0 run to make it 16-15 and force the BC timeout. The teams traded points and with the set tied at 23, Notre Dame brought in freshman serve specialist Maisie Alexander who closed it out to give the Irish the 25-23 set and match win.
Notre Dame volleyball return to Purcell Pavilion this weekend for two ACC games. They open with Wake Forest on Friday at 6:30 p.m. and then face Virginia Tech on Sunday at 1 p.m.
Contact José Sánchez Córdova at jsanch24@nd.edu.
