The Blue Devils may not have known their opponent too well, but that wasn't apparent in their dominant performance Wednesday night.
Duke's lack of familiarity with N.C. State's new coach and young squad did not stop the Blue Devils from winning their third straight ACC game. Duke swept the Wolfpack, 3-0, in front of more than 1,000 fans at Reynolds Coliseum.
"We didn't know much about them," head coach Jolene Nagel said. "We took advantage of a lot of opportunities they gave us to get a start on them."
Duke (10-2, 3-0 in the ACC) started fast and dominated N.C. State for the entirety of the match. The Wolfpack (2-11, 0-4) managed no more than 20 points in a single game, as the Blue Devils won, 30-13, 30-19 and 30-20.
From the outset, Duke set the game's momentum, never allowing N.C. State-the league's last-place team-to gain the upper hand.
"We talked beforehand about how we need to control the pace," junior libero Jenny Shull said. "We made sure that we played our game instead of letting them take control."
The Blue Devils ran out to an early 7-1 lead in the first game, prompting a Wolfpack timeout. Although N.C. State tried to fight back, it could never get the margin to within less than five points, eventually falling to Duke in the opening set.
Neither team could break out to a lead early in the second game, as N.C. State matched the Devils for the first 14 points. But N.C. State could not restrain Duke's offense for long, as the Blue Devils overwhelmed their opponent to win the second game easily.
The Wolfpack battled back to prevent a sweep in the third, tying the game at 10. The Blue Devils went on a 9-1 run, but N.C. State rallied and cut the lead to four at 24-20. Eventually, the Blue Devils were able to hold their opponents off by scoring the last six points in a row, securing the victory with the 30-20 win.
Throughout the match, Duke relied on its communication in its first ACC road match in a noisy road arena.
"When everyone's communicating and working together, it all just falls into place," senior Tealle Hunkus said. "We did a great job of keeping the energy and intensity up."
Junior Carrie DeMange recorded 12 kills to lead both teams, while freshman Rachael Moss recorded 10 and Hunkus added seven. Junior setter Ali Hausfeld recorded a match-high 31 assists.
On the defensive end, Shull led the team with seven digs, while DeMange and Hunkus each added six.
Sophomore Jourdan Norman scored three blocks, while DeMange and Hausfeld each recorded two.
While the Blue Devils continue to improve each game, they are still working on mistakes, Nagel said.
"We served pretty well, but we had a lot of service errors," she said. "We didn't block a lot of balls either and our passing was OK, but we're constantly working on that."
The Blue Devils, who beat Clemson and Georgia Tech in a set of home matches last weekend to open league play, will try to continue their undefeated streak in the ACC Saturday, when they take on North Carolina in Chapel Hill at 6 p.m.
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