NC State Holds On in Five Set Thriller

Friday, September 10

Piscataway, N.J.

6:30 PM

NC State

4-4,0-0ACC

Rutgers

6-2,0-0Big Ten

NC State

Rutgers

9/10/2021 10:24:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

PISCATAWAY, N.J. – NC State volleyball was able to outlast Rutgers to earn a hard-fought five set, 3-2 (25-22, 27-25, 19-25, 23-25, 15-9) win on Friday night at the Rutgers 9/11 Memorial Tournament presented by Marriott Bridgewater.

The Pack (4-4) started the match off with great energy but the Scarlet Knights (6-2) did not let up, forcing a decisive fifth set before the Wolfpack was able to hand Rutgers its first loss inside of the Rutgers Athletic Center.

Graduate student Melissa Evans was on a tear all match as she finished with a career- and game-high 25 kills on a solid .327 hitting clip to go along with five digs and an assist. Freshman Jada Allen continued her stellar play as she racked up a season-best 17 kills with an outstanding .500 hitting percentage and four blocks.

Junior Taylor Rowland added 16 kills while senior Jade Parchment recorded her second consecutive double-double in 13 kills and a season-high 16 digs. Freshman Maggie Jones stepped up tremendously, recording 31 assists with seven digs. Graduate student Kaylee Frazier posted a season- and game-high 23 digs.

Set One (NC State 25, Rutgers 22)
The opening set was a battle by both teams as neither team gained more than a three-point lead all the way through the media timeout at point 15. Tied at 15, Rowland recorded a kill before Parchment and Allen teamed up for a block to create a two-point gap that was just enough space to allow the Pack to claim the first set. Evans was dominant in the set as she tallied eight of the Wolfpack's 17 kills on a blistering .538 hitting percentage.

Set Two (NC State 27, Rutgers 25)
NC State started the second set on fire, jumping out to a nice 6-2 lead. The Scarlet Knights battled back to take the lead at 15-14. The teams kept battling back and forth until Rutgers was able to take a 24-22 lead. That's when Evans put the team on her back as she recorded back-to-back kills to tie the game at 24. It was Evans that gave NC State the 26-25 lead before Allen sealed the deal with the set-winning kill. Evans (9) and Allen (4) combined for 13 of NC State's 19 kills in the set.

Set Three (NC State 19, Rutgers 25)
The third set was all Rutgers as the Scarlet Knights took a quick 2-1 lead and never looked back. NC State struggled offensively as the team only registered 13 kills while committing eight errors and four service errors.

Set Four (NC State 23, Rutgers 25)
The fourth set was a wild one as both teams hit particularly well with the Pack registering a .417 clip and Rutgers putting up a .357 hitting percentage. Trailing 19-13, NC State reeled off a momentum-shifting 5-0 run forcing Rutgers to use a timeout after bringing the score within one (19-18). After the timeout, Rutgers scored two quick points to regain the crowd's energy which allowed the Scarlet Knights to claim the fourth set.

Set Five (NC State 15, Rutgers 9)
The final set was all NC State as the Pack recorded nine kills for a .400 hitting percentage while limiting Rutgers to five kills and forcing five errors for a .000 percentage. The Pack was in a smooth rhythm as the team held a six-point lead (8-2) at one point. Rowland earned the final kill of the match to allow the Wolfpack to win two games in the first day of the tournament.

Up Next
NC State will wrap up action at the Rutgers 9/11 Memorial Tournament presented by Marriott Bridgewater on Saturday at 2 p.m. as the Wolfpack takes on NJIT on Big Ten Network Plus.

#GoPack | @PackVBall