Jason Mackey: 'Flawless' match from No. 1 Pitt women's volleyball should serve notice to rest of NCAA
Jason Mackey / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
What the top-ranked Pitt women’s volleyball team didn’t necessarily intend to be a statement on Wednesday night was heard loud and clear, from the packed and boisterous Petersen Events Center to every NCAA championship hopeful across the country.
There’s a team somewhere capable of beating this?
In what was billed as a showdown between two of the top three teams in the country, No. 1 Pitt instead engineered a clinical takedown, disposing of third-ranked Penn State in straight sets (25-15, 25-19, 25-18) to run its record in match play to 7-0, 21-0 in sets.
It was the type of lopsided outcome you’d expect in an early-season tuneup, only this was hardly that. Penn State had swept six of its eight opponents thus far, including No. 4 Louisville, and the Panthers cruised to a breezy win.
One that reaffirmed what we probably already know, that this is a championship-or-bust season for coach Dan Fisher's program.
“Pitt’s a great team,” Penn State coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley gushed. “They’re going to do some really nice things this year.”
The goal for Pitt, again, isn't complicated. After three consecutive losses in the Final Four, its sights are set on a breakthrough and that elusive national championship.
At the same time, Fisher has smartly created an environment or culture where those goals can be acknowledged … but also tabled until the appropriate time.
“I feel like the team and [Fisher] have made it clear we want to be the No. 1 team at the end of the season,” sophomore outside hitter Torrey Stafford said. “Obviously it’s good for the fan support and inviting people to our games, but I think we have a good level head and want to win every game and take it game-by-game.”
It’s hard to blame Stafford.
I wouldn’t want to pass on the type of incredible stuff we witnessed Wednesday, either.
The atmosphere was flat-out electric, 11,800 packing the Pete and creating both the largest crowd and the first sellout in Pitt women’s volleyball history.
Senior libero Emmy Klika, one of those who has helped to mold this program into a national powerhouse, said she got chills when she walked out of the tunnel for warmups, peering into the crowd and seeing every seat filled.
It was clear Pitt fed off that intensity, too, winning seven of the match's first nine points when Stafford delivered one of her team-high 17 kills.
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Fisher’s Panthers faced little resistance, honestly. They trailed for a total of about 2 minutes — at 8-7 and 9-8 in the second set — and did myriad things well to produce the lopsided outcome.
Pitt neutralized Penn State graduate student Jess Mruzik, who had piled up 96 kills. The Panthers also provided a dominant blocking presence up front, while senior setter Rachel Fairbanks took turns feeding an array of powerful hitters.
It looked like Pitt was playing a fairly mediocre team ... which of course, it was not.
“I thought they played really well,” Schumacher-Cawley said. “We looked like a deer in headlights at times.”
Once again, if this is what Pitt is capable of doing to the third-ranked team in the country, what does that mean for its NCAA tournament chances?
Fisher and his players surely won’t answer that. They don’t have to. Their goal should be focusing on every match, leaning into the process and finding ways to improve, not daydreaming. However, Pitt's talent level is simply remarkable.
Sophomore right-side hitter Olivia Babcock (15 kills) was dominant at times, piling up five kills and three blocks in the second set and pummeling the ball both times Penn State had the lead. But she was hardly alone.
I got a kick out of watching Klika dig darn near everything, including a few times nearly barreling headfirst into the scorer’s table.
Valeria Vazquez-Gomez, a sixth-year player whose personality and leadership radiate from the court, delivered key contributions in several areas.
It was what you would expect from a veteran player, and the Panthers have plenty of those … along with young talent and legitimate stars who are among the best in the country at what they do.
“I thought the energy was incredible,” Fisher said. “Just really appreciate the Pitt fans, the volleyball fans and the students coming out and helping us make history. I thought except for two little bursts, our players played great and handled the emotions of the game really well.”
Further evidence of Pitt's dominance came in crunch time: In the second set, with an 18-17 lead, the Panthers rattled off seven of the final nine points. Then in the third, when Penn State mounted a 6-0 run, Stafford stepped up with three straight kills, each more powerful than the next.
"I thought they were flawless at times," Schumacher-Cawley said. "They stepped on the gas and didn’t let off."
If you haven’t watched Pitt or Penn State women’s volleyball or similarly skilled teams on the college circuit, you’re missing out. It’s a hugely entertaining and fun sport, the athleticism on the court obvious.
Pitt has that in spades, along with a camaraderie that other coaches spend years developing, which had me pondering two questions late Wednesday night: What’s the ceiling for this group and is there anyone close to it?
At one point during their post-match availability, Stafford and Fisher were asked how this year’s group compared to what the Panthers accomplished last December. If they were playing better volleyball than they did during that run to the Final Four.
“We’re returning a lot of our players,” Stafford said. “We’re coming to practice striving to get better. I would say we’re rolling. Let the good times roll, like 'Fish' always says.”
Added Fisher, “We’re better.”
Same as how the Penn State match played out, that should be a scary thought for the rest of the country.
Jason Mackey: [email protected] and @JMackeyPG on X.