In an anticipated meeting, the No. 18 Georgia Tech volleyball team pushed No. 3 Louisville before succumbing in a three-set sweep Sunday afternoon at O’Keefe Gymnasium.
The loss, played in front of an attendance of 1,200, followed a five-set loss to Notre Dame Friday at O’Keefe.
Louisville, the defending ACC champion, became the highest-ranked team to ever play at O’Keefe in Tech’s recorded history. In getting swept for the first time since losing to Minnesota in the second round of last season’s NCAA Tournament — 25-15, 36-34, 25-22 — the Jackets (11-3 overall, 2-2 ACC) challenged the Cardinals (14-0, 4-0) in a way none of Louisville’s first three ACC opponents had been able to do.
None of the Cardinals’ first three league opponents had scored more than 21 points in a set as Louisville swept all three decisions. In a roller-coaster second set, Tech held set point six times but could not make it to the finish line.
Outside hitter Julia Bergmann again led Tech with 12 kills along with nine digs and an ace.
The two losses, particularly the defeat to the Irish (5-9, 2-2) are a setback in the Jackets’ aspirations to win their first ACC title since 2004. The Jackets do have seven matches of their remaining 12 against the five teams ahead of them in the league standings, including one more with Louisville and two more with Pitt, which shares first place with the Cardinals.
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