Wasn't Easy, but Pitt Shoos Away Yellow Jackets

Olivia Babcock knows how hard it is to beat Georgia Tech, even on Pitt's home court. Players come. Players go. But Tech has taken Pitt to a full five sets at Fitzgerald Field House each of the last four seasons.

"That was definitely the first thing I thought about when it was 21 to 23 in the fourth," Babcock said after Sunday's match. "But I think we all just stepped up."

Pitt needed a killer instinct to shoo away the pesky Yellow Jackets and win their 12th match in a row. Unlike most sports, there's no clock to wind down in volleyball. The closest analogue is tennis – you need to keep scoring points until your opponent is buried.

On Sunday, the Panthers eventually found that killer instinct to keep things from going the distance for a fifth straight season. Down 23-21 in the 4th set, Pitt rattled off four consecutive points to avoid a winner-take-all 5th and secure the victory over GT.

"They're a really hard team to beat," Pitt outside hitter Blaire Bayless said. "Going into the match, we knew [it would] be a scrappy, hard, feisty game. We'd expect nothing less from them."

It was a strange match from the outset. GT got 3 of its first 4 points on aces. Pitt got 3 of its first 4 points on blocks. The Jackets were so lacking offensively that Babcock had more kills than their entire team until well into the second set.

Even as Pitt won those first two sets, it was a struggle. Attack errors from the Panthers and a sharper Tech defense forced the match into doubt for a while.

"We weren't always playing our best and we just we found a way to hang in there even when our serve/pass was inconsistent and we had to rely a little bit more on our pins than maybe we want to," head coach Dan Fisher said. "[Olivia] and Blaire definitely stepped up and were able to help us offensively when we weren't passing well."

For Babcock, it was the 3rd time this season she notched 25 kills – another bullet point on her growing resume to repeat as National Player of the Year. For Bayless, it was a new career high of 16 kills as she cemented herself as the go-to attacker on Pitt's left side.

Still, the Panthers needed to buckle down on a Brooke Mosher service run to clinch the victory – which they did on three straight kills from Babcock, Bayless and middle blocker Ryla Jones.

"It was just really nice that we were able to apply pressure in those last few points because I know we've been working on being a team that can apply pressure after 20," Babcock said. "Especially when it's that tight, the fact that we were able to get those points just meant a lot, and I'm glad we showed our growth."

These Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets may not have the same buzz (shut up, let me have this) as in previous years, but beating them is still a relief.

It wasn't the pure destruction that Pitt showed Friday night in a quick sweep of Clemson, but stepping up to win when you're not playing a great match? That's an important skill to sharpen ahead of December.

Fitz, Sweet Fitz

Tight matches against Georgia Tech aside, Pitt's home-court advantage is becoming one of the mightiest in the nation.

The Panthers have won 41 matches in a row in Oakland – the last loss being a razor-thin five-setter against Oregon in September 2023 that the Panthers dropped in the finale, 15-13. (It's still shy of the current longest home win streak in the nation: Nebraska at 52 straight.)

Against ACC opponents? Pitt hasn't taken an 'L' at home since dropping a match to then-#1 Louisville at the end of the 2021 regular season – a streak of 31 consecutive home conference victories.

"We have, in my opinion, one of the best fan bases in the NCAA," said Bayless. "Today you could really feel that and feel their energy, especially at the end of the fourth set it was absolutely roaring and it was really fun to feed off of that. It's really cool to just see how many people show up for us at every game."

I'll echo that. Even without the biggest student presence (they tend to show up more for Friday night matches than Saturday afternoon affairs), the Field House lit up late in that 4th set with encouragement for the Pitt side. You love to see it.

If you're planning to attend a home match before the volleyball team departs Fitzgerald Field House for good, you'd better make your plans in advance. All fans entering the Field House this weekend were greeted with a sign in the ticket window reading 'ALL TICKETS SOLD OUT' – as Pitt has sold out 10 straight ACC matches in their home gym going back to last season.

And luckily for Pitt, they won't need to face Georgia Tech at Fitzgerald Field House ever again.

Welcome Back, Bianca

Props to Georgia Tech middle blocker Bianca Garibaldi. She left Pitt for Atlanta this winter after it became clear she wouldn't be moving up the depth chart at middle blocker – not after she only played in 6 of 30 matches last season and the Panthers adding early enrollee Abbey Emch. No hard feelings.

Even though she's short for a middle (listed at 5'11") there is plenty of talent, and Garibaldi showcased it Sunday. Her 4 kills and 4 blocks were crucial to Georgia Tech's third set victory, and she even picked up a couple aces from the service line.

The Argentina native ended up with 9 kills and a season-high 8 blocks on Sunday.

I expect Garibaldi to continue to cause problems for Pitt and other ACC teams, especially since she's found a good home at a Georgia Tech program that has developed South American players splendidly in the past.