Going into its final homestand of the season, Duke needed two wins to capture the ACC championship outright.
The Blue Devils (24-5, 16-3 in the ACC) got them in convincing fashion, clinching the title with back-to-back wins Friday and Saturday against Virginia Tech (18-11, 9-10) and Virginia (14-15, 8-11).
On Friday, excitement flowed through the air as a rowdy crowd, partly consisting of Duke Basketball fans given the chance to leave the walk-up line, filled the seats, knowing that a win would guarantee the team at least a share of the ACC title.
The match on Friday began with special player introductions of seniors Becci Burling and Claire Smalzer—both of whom reached milestones this season. Burling, a middle blocker who recorded her 1,000th career kill against Miami, now ranks 18th all-time in Duke history. Smalzer recorded 14 digs in both Friday and Saturday’s matches, moving the outside hitter into third all-time in school history.
“I’m extremely proud of both of these girls,” head coach Jolene Nagel said. “We have had some very special players come through his gym and since 1999, we have always had an outstanding team, so for them to achieve all that they have means a lot, and it is something they can hold on to forever.”
The match against Virginia Tech began and ended well for the Blue Devils as they beat the Hokies in four games. In games one and two, the Blue Devils’ defense, led by libero Ali McCurdy, dominated play and held Virginia Tech to a .130 hitting percentage.
But the Hokies began to dictate play in game three of the match. Justine Record, an outside hitter, recorded 10 of her 19 kills in this set and led her team to a .357 hitting percentage for the set and a 25-20 win.
“She is an outstanding athlete and is playing very well for them,” Nagel said. “Her fast arm swing and high vertical threw off our timing for the block, and she was able to take advantage of it. But we made some adjustments after game three that seemed to work and put her out of her element.”
It wasn’t until the closing points of game four that the momentum began to shift back into Duke’s favor. Again, it was Record that kept Duke on its heels as she hit two big aces to put Virginia Tech ahead 23-19. But the Blue Devils went on a 6-0 run to close the match, the last five points served by defensive specialist Nailah Waterfield.
“After game two, I think [Virginia Tech] felt a sense of urgency to come back at us strong,” said junior middle blocker Amanda Robertson, who led Duke in hitting percentage Friday. “But we came back strong and ended the match in a great run.”
The momentum that the Blue Devils had at the end of Friday’s match carried straight to the conclusion of Saturday’s match against Virginia. Again led by its defense, Duke recorded 61 total digs—22 from McCurdy—and held Virginia to a hitting percentage of .088 to win the match in straight sets and clinch the ACC championship as well as a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
“We are still expecting big things from this team,” Nagel said. “This championship is something that no one can take away from this team, but it’s going to be exciting to see how far we can go once the Tournament begins.”
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