TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The Florida State volleyball team (12-7, 4-4) returns to Tully Gym this Friday and Sunday for matches against Virginia Tech (9-10, 2-6) and Wake Forest (12-7, 4-4). Friday’s match against the Hokies will begin at 6:30 pm while Sunday’s match will begin at 1 pm Both matches will be streamed live on ACC Network Extra.
Paint It Pink
Friday’s match against Virginia Tech will serve as Florida State’s “Paint It Pink” match. The Seminoles will be wearing pink uniforms and warmup shirts for the match against the Hokies. The jerseys that the players will be wearing on Friday will be auctioned off with all proceeds going to the Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare’s Walker Breast Program.
New Court, Who Dis?
Tully Gym will look a little different for the rest of the season as the Seminoles have installed a new Taraflex court. The new court will be in place for the Noles final five home games. During the offseason, the Noles will also be installing a permanent Taraflex practice court.
Switching it Up
The Seminoles have had some bad injury luck this season which has caused Head Coach Chris Poole to be a little creative with the starting lineups this season. Through 19 matches, the Seminoles have used nine different lineups. The lineup of Draskovic, Koenig, Ryan, Louis, Perez and Dupes has been the most popular lineup of late as the Seminoles have used that lineup in five out of the last eight matches.
Home Cookin’
Once again, Tully Gym has been one of the toughest places to play in the ACC this season. The Seminoles are 8-1 this season with their only loss coming to No. 2 Louisville on Sept. 25. The Noles have tallied six sweeps inside Tully Gym and have won 27 out of the 33 sets played in Tully Gym this season.
Finding a Way
The Seminoles won back-to-back five-set matches against North Carolina and Miami. This is the first time that the Seminoles have won back-to-back five-set matches since the 2017 season. The match against the Tar Heels was the first time the Seminoles have won a five-set match on the road since Nov. 2, 2019, against High Point.
Scouting the Hokies
Virginia Tech enters Friday’s match with the Seminoles with a 9-10 record and a 2-6 record in ACC play. The Hokies have dropped their last five matches but all of those five matches have gone to four sets. The Hokies are led by Marci Byers who is in her third season with the Hokies.
On the court, Cera Powell has been leading the way for Virginia Tech. Powell recorded 176 kills for the Hokies. Anabel Zier has also been great for the Hokies this season. Zier currently ranks fifth in the conference in hitting percentage (.365).
Scouting the Demon Deacons
The Wake Forest Demon Deacons are off to one of their best starts in recent memory with a 12-7 overall record and a 4-4 record in ACC play. The Demon Deacons are coached by Randi Smart who is in her fourth year at Winston Salem.
The Demon Deacons are led by Paige Crawford who has recorded 194 kills for a 3.29 kills per set average. Just a freshman, Crawford was named the ACC Freshman of the Week on Oct. 10. Freshman libero was also named the ACC Freshman of the Week on Sept. 19.
Last Time Out
The Florida State volleyball team (12-7, 4-4) fell in three sets (19-25, 18-25, 22-25) to No. 8 Pitt (18-2, 8-0) at Fitzgerald Field House in Pittsburgh, Pa., on Sunday afternoon.
After the Panthers led from start to finish in set one, the Panthers jumped out to a 10-5 lead in set two, but the Seminoles battled back to take their first lead of the match at 14-13. The teams were tied at 16-16 before the Panthers went on a 9-2 run to end the set.
Set three proved to be the most competitive set of the match as the two teams went back and forth with the Seminoles taking an early 10-8 advantage. The Panthers were able to create some space to take a 21-18 lead, but the Noles took the next two points to cut the lead to one. That would be as close as the Noles would come as the Panthers took the match-clinching set 25-22.
Audrey Koenig and Emma Clothier led the Noles with eight kills apiece while Alejandra Perez led the way defensively with nine digs.
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