Pitt Volleyball has now made five straight final four appearances and is one step closer to clinching the National Championship title. Ahead of the NCAA Semifinal, the head coach, Dan Fisher, gave some insight into the team’s mindset.
The Pittsburgh Panthers last faced off against the Purdue Boilermakers, defeating them 3-1. They are now set to face the Texas A&M Aggies in the NCAA National Semifinal on Thursday.
Pittsburgh Panthers Volleyball’s Dan Fisher Urges the Panthers to ‘Stay in the Moment’
During the NCAA Final Four media conference, a reporter asked Fisher to give a message to his team after making the Final Four five times in a row. He urged the players to be themselves, noting that they always play their best when they stay in the moment.
“The main message is, just stay in the moment,” he said. “What’s different about this team, and I think you know, there’s just, when we’re playing our best, we’re really good and so, just knowing that we don’t know what the outcome will be, but certainly know how good we can be and so, just trying to be ourselves,” he added.
The Panthers put up a strong showing against the Boilermakers, defeating them 3 – 1 (25-22, 25-21, 22-25, 25-17). Olivia Babcock had 23 kills and two blocks during the match. She was also named the Pittsburgh Regional Most Outstanding Player.
‘They Pushed Us to Our Limit’ – Pitt Volleyball’s Dan Fisher Speaks On Match Against the Aggies
Following the game against Texas A&M, Fisher noted that the Aggies didn’t make it easy to defeat them. He also gave credit to Babcock for her strong contributions to their victory.
“They pushed us to our limit. They just really have a tough offense to stop, and I don’t think we always were able to do that. We were just better offensively. Clearly [Olivia Babcock] carried us for a while. Brooke [Mosher] had a great match. When Liv wasn’t carrying us, Blaire [Bayless] and Marina [Pezelj] stepped up big. Mostly just thought we were pretty dominant offensively,” he said.
He acknowledged that the opposing team had “so many good players,” and applauded his team for stepping up to the challenge.
Babcock had an impressive .333 hitting percentage. Combined with Pezelj and Bayless, the trio gained 46 points for the Panthers. After the match, Babcock spoke about the victory, noting that although it was hard, their dominance is a testament to their hard work.
