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On the first point of the fourth set, outside hitter Diana Akopova rose up and spiked the ball crosscourt off an Elena Karakasi set, sneaking it just in the back right edge of North Carolina State’s court. Three points later, Akopova recorded another kill off a set from Karakasi on the right side of the court after Abby Casiano screamed in an attempt to decoy the Wolfpack block, putting the Orange up 3-1 early in the set.

Akopova recorded a career-high nine kills in Syracuse’s (14-5, 3-4 Atlantic Coast) four-set loss to NC State (10-8, 4-3 ACC) on Friday. The loss is SU’s third straight and first home loss this season. Despite Syracuse’s offense struggling throughout, Akopova, a freshman, contributed to some of the strongest offensive and defensive moments the Orange had against the Wolfpack, finishing with a season-high five digs and three total blocks.

Akopova had a significant increase in playing time today, filling in the outside hitter role often played by Viktoriia Lokhmanchuk, who did not play because of a medical issue, head coach Leonid Yelin said.

In the fourth set, Akopova displayed a variety of kill shots, including scoring a well-placed tip shot kill between multiple Wolfpack defenders, which got the Orange within one point, 16-15. In the third set, she attempted another tip shot, placing it perfectly between four defenders who didn’t have a chance to dive and save the point.

At times, her kill was too strong for the Wolfpack defense to either block or dig. During one point in the second set, Akopova spiked the ball from the right side of the court, and it was ultimately dug high and behind the NC State defense as the ball hit the scoreboard.

Akopova performed well defensively, too. In the fourth set, Akopova and Casiano jumped up and block assisted a Wolfpack kill attempt, sending it straight back down the court. It gave the Orange a 10-8 lead as part of a 3-0 run.

“(It’s) something what I expect from her,” Yelin said when reading the statistics sheet postgame. “I can’t say she played incredibly great, but she didn’t hurt us either. She was helping.”

Despite recording a career-high in kills and total blocks, Akopova also recorded four errors, sending kill attempts out of bounds and having several kill attempts blocked by the Wolfpack.

As NC State was beginning to pull away from the Orange in the fourth set, Akopova went up for another kill attempt, hoping to get the lead cut to two points. Instead, she was blocked by the Wolfpack’s Amanda Rice and Riley Shaak, which increased their lead to four points in the set, allowing NC State to finish the set, 25-21, and win the match.

“I think she’s getting there to be the player who (you) can rely on, so she can go and get on the court and help the team in difficult situations,” middle blocker Marina Markova said.

Having been outscored 9-1 in sets over the past three matches, Syracuse will play the second of a four-game home stand when North Carolina (13-4, 2-4 ACC) visits Sunday. SU hasn’t defeated the Tar Heels since 2018.

Published on October 15, 2021 at 4:12 pm

Contact Cole: colebambini@gmail.com | @ColeBambini