Inconsistencies plague SU volleyball, swept by Blue Devils

Still searching for its first conference win of the season, Syracuse volleyball came into the match with a positive mindset. However, the Orange were quickly overpowered by Duke, who won the match in straight sets; 25-14, 25-16, and 25-9.

SU (2-16, 0-8 in the ACC) has only taken one of its last 15 sets. The Orange haven’t notched a conference win since Nov. 6, 2022.

The opening set of the match saw the sides trade points back and forth as Duke would expand the lead before Syracuse responded with a point or two. It was similar to what happened for the Orange during Friday night’s match against UNC as they struggled coming out of the media timeout. The Blue Devils took advantage of those struggles by scoring four unanswered points before rallying in set number one. 

Syracuse came out of the gate flying in the second set, claiming five of the first seven points. Duke’s experience pulled through as the Blue Devils strung together seven unanswered points. The Orange tried to claw back from their deficit, but a lack of execution was the storyline for Syracuse in the set and the match.

“They had the seams and two deep corners open, and we really wanted to attack those,” said head coach Bakeer Ganesharatnam. “I thought that was a very simple and very efficient game plan. Unfortunately, our execution was not consistent enough.”

The mental mistakes continued into the third set for the Orange as the pressure mounted as it was Duke who claimed the early advantage this time. SU brought the set within a point, but that would be the closest it came as mistakes plagued the hosts. The Blue Devils went deeper into their bench and claimed their seventh sweep of the season today with the win over the Orange.

“I thought Duke did a really good job, sticking to the gameplan and really executing at a pretty high level,” said Ganesharatnam. “But to a certain degree, it’s tough when your down two sets and you’re not playing well and you know that, so you’re trying to get out of that funk and find a rhythm.”

Freshman middle blocker Zharia Harris-Waddy led SU with seven kills. Freshman setter Veronica Sierzant added 11 assists for the hosts.

Syracuse did well at containing an All-ACC first-team member in Gracie Johnson who posted just five kills; a year ago, she had nine as the Orange improved defensively by containing her. However, other members of the Blue Devils stepped up and supplemented her production and more.

Syracuse hits the road next weekend starting Friday with a huge test against No. 11 Georgia Tech in a 7 p.m. match before traveling to Florida State on Sunday.