Wake Forest Falls to North Carolina in Sunday Big Four Showing

Sunday, October 13

Winston-Salem, N.C.

3:30 P.M.

Wake Forest University

10-7,2-4ACC

North Carolina

13-2,5-1ACC

North Carolina

Wake Forest

Photo by: Helen McGinnis / Wake Forest Athletics

Wake Forest Falls to North Carolina in Sunday Big Four Showing

10/13/2024 5:46:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score Photo Gallery

Sahara Maruska tied a season high versus the Tar Heels.

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Pitted against North Carolina for a second Big Four matchup of the fall, Wake Forest volleyball (10-7, 2-4) hosted the Tar Heels (13-2, 5-1) on Sunday afternoon inside Varsity Arena. The Demon Deacons suffered a 3-0 defeat (21-25, 16-25, 17-25).

Sahara Maruska tied her season high in kills during the contest, finishing with a team-best 14. The Houston native also posted her most efficient hitting performance of the year, tallying a .444 attacking percentage. Maruska added five digs to her line as well.

Olivia Murphy contributed seven kills (.316) and three blocks – the latter tying a match-best mark. Paige Crawford totaled six kills and six digs.

Setters Rian Baker and Becca Bellows had 18 and 13 assists, respectively. Three Deacons finished with five or more digs, led by Emma Farrell's team-high seven.

How it Happened

Paige Crawford delivered the first kill of the afternoon on the opening possession.
Both teams suffered a few early attacking errors, and the score was tied at 5 all in set one.
- Sahara Maruska and Tina Grkovic next notched a kill apiece.
Laila Ricks checked in to give the Deacs some firepower with her hits, as the two sides went back and forth.
Dior Charles landed a middle kill to create a one-point game, with Wake Forest trailing 12-11.
By the day's first media timeout, North Carolina led 15-13.
- The Tar Heels added three consecutive points after the break.
  - Crawford stopped the run with a powerful punch – set up by Becca Bellows after Maruska made a head-turning dig.
Paced by aggressive swings, Wake Forest jumped on an immediate 3-0 spree, forcing a Tar Heel timeout.
- The Deacons trailed 19-17 at the time.
  - Jaime Santer soon entered the match.
North Carolina responded with three points in a row.
Charles gave a spark with back-to-back plays, first leaping for a kill before making a rejection near the right side.
After Maruska skied to knock in a ball, North Carolina signaled for a timeout – still up 23-20.
The Tar Heels finished off the first with a pair of final kills, winning 25-21.
- Crawford and Maruska had four digs and kills, respectively, in the frame.
North Carolina opened set two in front, 5-3.
- Maruska and Olivia Murphy chipped in points for Wake Forest on kills.
Going down 8-4, the Deacons regrouped at their bench.
- Grkovic netted a kill immediately once play resumed.
A 5-1 run upped the Tar Heels' advantage to 14-6.
Murphy took over in her attacks to ignite four unanswered points for Wake Forest, cutting things down to 16-11.
Traded rallies took over again, with North Carolina staying ahead (21-15).
The visitors reached set point on a service ace before winning the period on a 25-16 finish.
- Murphy had seven kills and three blocks through two sets.
The first four points of set three went to North Carolina before the team committed a hitting error.
Maruska produced a kill and ace, as Wake Forest fought to trim the deficit (8-5).
Scoring on six of seven tries, the Tar Heels went up 14-6.
- Maruska and Crawford stayed heady to give the Deacs more points.
  - The latter pummeled down another ball to make the score 19-12.
Four of the next six points were grabbed by North Carolina.
The Tar Heels reached match point on a Deacon serving error and ultimately won the contest with a final kill.
Wake Forest fell, 3-0.

Standout Stats

Sahara Maruska's kill total (14) and hitting clip (.444) were both her best personal marks of fall 2024.
Three Wake Forest individuals collected five or more digs:
- Emma Farrell – 7
- Paige Crawford – 6
- Sahara Maruska – 5

Additional Notes

Wake Forest and North Carolina matched up for the 72nd time throughout program history on Sunday.
Laila Ricks crossed over 600 career kills during the weekend.
Sahara Maruska led the team in kills for the second time this season.
- Finishing with 14 kills versus the Tar Heels, Sahara Maruska is only nine away from reaching 1,000 for her collegiate career.

From Coach Smart
"North Carolina has been playing well and did so today. Our hitters made some aggressive plays, getting into position. Our success at getting 50-50 balls is getting there and we will continue to work in making strides. There's a lot of volleyball ahead of us, starting with these incoming road matches."

Up Next
Wake Forest begins a two-week road tilt next, starting with a trip to the Midwest to take on nationally-ranked Louisville (Oct. 18) and Notre Dame (Oct. 20). Fans can catch both matches on ACC Network Extra.

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