Notre Dame was one of the biggest pleasant surprises early on in the college volleyball landscape. After going 10-18 in 2022, the Irish won eight of their first 10 to begin 2023. It’s one thing to win. It’s another to do so consistently. And ACC play has presented a much greater challenge to the Irish. A three-game losing streak early in conference play was concerning, although the Irish stabilized with consecutive wins. Since then, though, Notre Dame has lost five straight, including consecutive emphatic defeats this weekend to Miami and Florida State.
Before this weekend, the Irish had only lost twice at Purcell Pavilion this season. But they knew this weekend would be difficult as the Hurricanes and Seminoles each sit near the top of the ACC standings. Miami dominated the opening set in Friday’s contest, nearly doubling Notre Dame up by a 25-13 margin. The Irish bounced back in the second set, snapping a streak of five straight sets lost dating back to Oct. 20 against Virginia Tech.
However, another five-set losing skid would begin immediately after. Notre Dame dropped a heartbreaker in the third set by a 29-27 score. The Irish blew a 23-19 lead and let two set-point opportunities slip away. The Irish were unable to recover, dropping the final set by a decisive 25-15 margin. Notre Dame was led in kills by junior Sydney Palazzolo (12), graduate student Nicole Drewnick in assists (27) and senior Hattie Monson in digs (10).
Notre Dame’s struggles continued on Sunday afternoon. Florida State overwhelmed the Irish from start to finish, sweeping the match while holding the Irish to just 58 points. The Irish fell behind 3-0 in the first set, 8-3 in the second and 4-0 in the third, putting themselves behind the eight ball. Notre Dame didn’t have a lead in a set any later than 5-4, and even that didn’t come until the third set. At no point did the Irish lead by multiple points. The Seminoles shut them down in just about every fashion.
Notre Dame will get a chance to turn things around next weekend, but their schedule will not get much easier. The Irish travel to Clemson (14-10, 5-7 ACC) on Friday and No. 11 Georgia Tech (19-3, 10-2 ACC) on Sunday. Notre Dame now sits at 10-10 on the season, the first time the Irish have been .500 since they started 2-2.
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