Demon Deacons Bounce Back with 3-1 Victory Over NC State

Sunday, October 25

Winston-Salem, N.C.

1 p.m.

Wake Forest University

9-12,3-7ACC

NC State

13-8,4-6ACC

Team	1	2	3	4	Final F
NC State	25	22	21	23	1
Wake Forest	21	25	25	25	3

PDF Box Score

10/25/2026 5:40:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

Graduate student Ryleigh Whitekettle and freshman Lyla Stewart both recorded more than 10 kills in the win.

By: KJ Smith

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Powered by stellar performances by graduate student Ryleigh Whitekettle and freshman Lyla Stewart, the Wake Forest volleyball team (9-12, 3-7 ACC) avenged its loss on Friday to Big Four rival NC State (13-8, 4-6 ACC) with a 3-1 victory over the Wolfpack on Sunday afternoon at Varsity Arena.

Stewart led the Demon Deacons with 14 kills against the Wolfpack, bringing her to 236 in her first collegiate season. The Powell, Ohio, native also tallied nine digs, a block and an assist.

Stewart has been on fire recently for the Deacs, having recorded 10 or more kills in five of the last six matches. Overall, Stewart has logged 76 kills during that span.

Whitekettle continued to shine for the Demon Deacons, finishing the match with 12 kills, four blocks and four digs. The Topsail Beach, N.C., native currently leads Wake Forest in kills, totaling 247 this season.

Sophomore Sadie Poeck recorded one of her best performances of the season, matching her season-high with nine kills on Sunday. Poeck also added three blocks, a dig and an assist in the win.

Freshman Emma Keeping tallied a team-high 21 assists, as well as six digs and a kill. Meanwhile, junior Becca Bellows recorded her third double-double of the season, tallying 19 assists, 10 digs and the lone service ace of the match for the Demon Deacons.

Defensively, the Deacs were led by senior Andrea Roman, who finished the match with a team-high 11 digs, as well as a pair of assists. With her performance, the Humacao, Puerto Rico, native continues to lead the ACC in total digs with 313 this season.

Redshirt senior Sanaa Williams and redshirt junior Catherine Burke powered the front line, with both notching at least four blocks against NC State. Burke led Wake Forest with five blocks to go along with four kills and three digs, while Williams added four blocks, four kills and a dig.

Overall, the Demon Deacons led the Wolfpack in total blocks, 9-8.

Elsewhere, sophomore Amina N'Diaye logged a career-high 10 digs while also adding four kills and an assist. Meanwhile, junior Dhru Lalaji tallied seven digs.

How It Happened

After the Wolfpack opened the first set on a 5-0 run, freshman Lyla Stewart recorded back-to-back kills to move the Demon Deacons within three.
Sophomore Sadie Poeck made it 6-3 with a kill.
Stewart and redshirt junior Catherine Burke combined on a block to cut the deficit to three.
Wake Forest capitalized on a pair of NC State errors to make it 8-6.
Poeck moved the Deacs within four.
Stewart added a kill to make it 15-11 coming out of the technical timeout.
Wake Forest went on a 6-0 run to take a 17-16 lead.
- Burke opened the run with a kill.
- Following an attack error by NC State, Stewart and sophomore Amina N'Diaye recorded back-to-back kills to cut the deficit to one.
- The Deacs capitalized on a pair of Wolfpack errors to take the lead.
Poeck and Stewart notched back-to-back kills to halt a short run by the Wolfpack.
NC State won the first set, 25-21.
The two sides traded points early in the second set.
Redshirt senior Sanaa Williams recorded a kill to move the Deacs within one.
- Burke and Poeck blocked a Wolfpack attack on the next rally to tie the set at 9-9.
The Deacs capitalized on a pair of errors to claim a one-point lead.
Graduate student Ryleigh Whitekettle evened the score once again with a kill.
Stewart added another kill to put the Deacs ahead, 17-16.
The Deacs extended their lead to 23-20 on a four-point swing.
- Burke and Whitekettle opened the run with back-to-back kills, giving the Demon Deacons a one-point lead.
  - The duo would combine on a block on the next rally to push the lead to 22-20.
- Whitekettle ended the run with another kill.
Wake Forest won the second set, 25-22.
The two sides traded points once again to open the third set.
Wake Forest went on a four-point surge to take an 8-6 lead.
- Burke and Whitekettle logged back-to-back kills to tie the score at 6-6.
- After an NC State error, Williams and Whitekettle combined on a block to give the Deacs a two-point lead.
Following a short spell by the Wolfpack, the Demon Deacons responded with a 3-0 run to take a 15-12 lead heading into the technical timeout.
- Whitekettle and Poeck both logged kills during the run.
After NC State took the lead, the Deacs recorded a 6-0 run to make it 22-17.
N'Diaye closed out the set with a kill as Wake Forest won the third set, 25-21.
Stewart ended a short 3-0 run by the Wolfpack with a kill to begin the fourth set.
- The Powell, Ohio, native added another kill after another run by the Wolfpack to cut the deficit to 6-3.
After NC State pushed its lead to seven, the Demon Deacons went on a 9-2 run to tie it at 14-14.
- Williams and Poeck opened the run with back-to-back kills before combining on a block to cut the deficit to four.
- Stewart recorded a kill to make it 13-10.
- Freshman Emma Keeping moved the Deacs within three once again with a kill.
- Junior Becca Bellows tallied a service ace to cut the deficit to one.
- Whitekettle evened the score with a kill to end the run.
Wake Forest answered another run by the Wolfpack with a five-point surge to grab a 20-18 lead.
- Whitekettle notched a pair of kills to open the run.
  - The Topsail Beach, N.C., native combined with Williams on a block to tie the set at 18-18.
- Following an NC State error, N'Diaye recorded her fourth kill of the set to push the lead to two.
Wake Forest capitalized on a pair of errors to win the fourth set, 25-23.

Standout Stats

Freshman Lyla Stewart continued her hot stretch of play, recording 10 or more kills for the fifth time in the last six matches on Sunday.
- Stewart finished the match with a team-high 14 kills, nine digs, a block and an assist.
Graduate student Ryleigh Whitekettle extended her team-best kill total to 247 after posting 12 kills, four blocks and four digs against the Wolfpack.
Senior Andrea Roman tallied a team-high 11 digs against NC State, bringing her season total to 313.
- The Humacao, Puerto Rico, native currently leads the ACC in total digs this season.

ACC Digs Leaders

Rank	Name	School	Total Digs
1.	Andrea Roman	Wake Forest	313
2.	Maya Evens	Notre Dame	310
3.	Payton Petersen	Louisville	308
4.	Ivy Cooper	Virginia Tech	293
5.	Sophia Johnson	Cal	284

Additional Notes

The Demon Deacons are now 35-36 all-time against the Wolfpack.
- Wake Forest also improved to 22-15 at home in the all-time series.
Redshirt junior Catherine Burke reached 50 blocks on the season.
Junior Dhru Lalaji eclipsed the 100-dig mark against NC State.
Sophomore Amina N'Diaye recorded a career-high 10 digs against the Wolfpack.
Sophomore Sadie Poeck matched her season-high with nine kills on Sunday.

From Coach Hulsmeyer
"That was a gutsy match from our team today. They battled from being down a set, and then they battled back from being down 12-5 in that fourth set. To continue to trust each other and battle back is incredible. That's the kind of volleyball we're able to play when we're able to focus and play together. We have to continue to take this and really grind that mentality into our team. This is how we are going to play the rest of the season no matter what the score is and no matter who's on the other side. We'll win some volleyball matches if we play like this the rest of the season."

Up Next
The Deacs continue their homestand next weekend, hosting No. 2 Pitt and No. 7 SMU.

The Demon Deacons face the Panthers on Friday, Oct. 30, at 6:30 p.m. before taking on the Mustangs in the annual We Are Wake Mental Health Awareness Match on Sunday, Nov. 1, at 1 p.m.

Admission is free for all spectators and both matches will be streamed live on ACC Network Extra.