Wake Forest University
14-13,6-10ACC
Duke
16-11,7-9ACC
Crawford Reaches New Career High, Deacs Fall to Duke in Five-Set, Big Four Battle
11/16/2022 10:23:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Wake Forest competed in a five-set outing for the fourth time this season.
DURHAM, N.C. – Matched up against the Duke Blue Devils (16-11, 7-9) for the second time in 10 days, Wake Forest volleyball (14-13, 6-10) battled for over three hours worth of competition on Wednesday night (Nov. 16) before ultimately suffering a five-set heartbreaker on the road (25-22, 24-26, 25-23, 29-31, 11-15).
Two sets within the contest went to extra points.
Several Wake Forest players either reached new personal highs or tied previous marks during the evening. Paige Crawford recorded a new career-best of 21 kills, while Peyton Suess added 21 of her own to tie her highest career total in a single match. The senior also added five digs to her line.
Andrea Fuentes finished with 49 assists and 16 digs, her highest totals in an ACC match this season.
Olivia Franke and Audrey Douglas chipped in 10 kills – the latter tying her career high.
Megan Merril gathered 13 digs, her most ever in a conference match. Kalani Whillock registered eight digs.
Freshman libero Emma Farrell notched the first double-double of her young career, going for 21 digs to lead all individuals while adding 10 assists. Fresh off of her second Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Freshman of the Week nod, Farrell has collected 43 digs through her last two matches.
Wake Forest out dug Duke (78-73) and tied with the Blue Devils in kills (69-69).
How it Happened
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Duke scored the match's first three points before Audrey Douglas swung down the right side.
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Peyton Suess then tallied three kills in a row to tie the first set at 4-4.
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The next 12 total possessions were traded, resulting in five tied scores.
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Olivia Franke chipped in a kill and block during the action.
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Paige Crawford landed a swift hit, and the Blue Devils suffered an attacking error on the left side, putting Wake Forest in front (12-11).
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The Deacs created a 5-0 push to take a 15-11 lead into the first media timeout.
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Plays by Franke and Emmy Ogogor at the net helped keep Wake Forest's advantage steady, tacking a short 4-1 burst to lead 20-16.
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The Blue Devils took a timeout.
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Immediately afterward, Franke and Suess punched a ball apiece to add two more points into the column.
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Duke had an answer with three quick points, trailing 22-19.
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Another three, capped with a service ace, tied the board at 22 all in set one.
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However, the Blue Devils committed two errors before Franke swung hard one final time to finish the period in Wake Forest's favor.
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Wake Forest won set one, 25-22.
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Suess and Franke had five and four kills, respectively, in the opening period.
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Megan Merril subbed onto the floor to tally five digs.
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A 4-1 start by the Deacs opened set two.
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Suess kept her heavy attacks going, with Crawford chipping in.
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Scoring on four of five tries, Wake Forest led 11-7 at the time during the second frame.
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Duke caught fire, however, on a 7-1 push that gave the host squad a 14-12 advantage.
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Kills in back-to-back fashion by Douglas gave life back to the Deacons.
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Fast swings from both sides ensued, leading to a slight 18-17 Blue Devil lead.
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Suess evened the board at 19-19 before four combined serving errors from both ends led to another tied mark, 22-22.
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Franke delivered a clutch ace to force extra points, 24-24.
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Nevertheless, Duke secured the set's final two points, 26-24, and evened the match at 1-1.
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Andrea Fuentes shined as a facilitator, posting 10 assists and five digs in set two.
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Suess netted her ninth kill early to cause a 3-3 tie in the third set.
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Duke responded with another run, 5-1.
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Franke ended the surge with a kill, sparking a 4-1 Deacon clip.
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Another likewise momentum boost erupted for Wake Forest, as Douglas and Ogogor denied on a major block followed by a Crawford hit.
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The Deacs maintained a three-point gain through the next seven rallies.
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Duke scored three times to cut the deficit to a single point, 21-20.
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Crawford finished a long rally with a successful pound, and Douglas punched one to the hardwood to give Wake Forest another three-point stretch, 23-20.
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Ogogor landed a middle kill to place her Deacs at set point.
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Duke didn't die down and kept play going, scoring three times in a row.
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Ogogor would be the answer – leaping for another spike from the same spot to end the hard-fought set with Wake Forest on top, 25-23.
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Suess went 4-of-9 on attacks with zero errors during the third set.
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Set four was an absolute story of traded play, resulting in a total of 16 tied scores and seven lead changes.
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Making an unsuccessful challenge to review an attacking error, the Blue Devils found themselves down 24-19.
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However, a 6-0 run put them ahead, 25-24, at set point.
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Crawford regained possession for Wake Forest on an outside kill.
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The score went on to become tied six more times, with both teams going toe-for-toe down the line.
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Duke found a way to end the lengthy frame victoriously, knocking a kill and making a block for the final points.
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Duke hung on through an intense, extra points finish to win set four, 31-29.
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Crawford exploded for 10 kills in the set.
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A kill by Crawford and a Merril ace opened set five.
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Suess soon went for two consecutive kills, tying the margin at 5-5.
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Plugging in four points on its next five plays, Duke went up 9-6.
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Wake Forest regrouped.
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The Blue Devils scored three more times in their following four possessions, forcing another Deacon timeout.
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Wake Forest trailed 12-7 at the time.
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After Duke added two more points, Deacon reserves Lauren Strain and Annabelle Daly checked in to notch a kill and ace, respectively.
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The Blue Devils won the set on a final kill, 15-11, to ultimately capture the match victory.
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Wake Forest fell, 3-2.
Standout Stats
Several Wake Forest players either reached new personal highs or tied previous marks during Wednesday's match:
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Paige Crawford – set a new career high in kills (21)
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Peyton Suess – tied career high in kills (21)
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Audrey Douglas – tied career high in kills (10)
From the Head Honcho
"We worked ourselves to a great place to win the match," said head coach Randi Smart. "Both offensively and defensively, our players pushed themselves and created a lot of scoring opportunities. Unfortunately, we didn't finish when we had the opportunity. The work was great. Now, we need to finish."
Up Next
Wake Forest travels out of state one more time this 2022 regular season, making the trip to Charlottesville for a Sunday match versus the Virginia Cavaliers.
