PITTSBURGH - Marina Pezelj is from Monaco and earned an invite to compete with the France Senior National Team in women's volleyball.

The 6-foot-1 freshman outside hitter is now in PIttsburgh. Pezelj being recruited to the Steel City is part of how Dan Fisher has built a dynasty. He has turned the Panthers into a program people want to play for.

Pezelj turned in a career-high 12 kills during a 3-0 win against Michigan in the second round of the NCAA Division I women's volleyball tournament Saturday night at Petersen Events Center. The Panthers are moving on the Sweet 16 for the sixth consecutive season.

"We had two returning starters on the floor and here we are in the Sweet 16," Fisher said. "I'm proud of this city and the fan support we have."

Pezelj has earned more opportunities later in the season for Pitt (27-4).

Pezelj's first major performance came against Notre Dame, when she attempted 30 attacks and finished with 12 kills on Oct. 17 on the the road. Since then Pezejl attempted 20 more attacks in 12 of the the Panthers' 16 matches.

Pezelj said she has focused on her defense to help fit in with the lineup. She had seven digs against Michigan.

​"I thinking bringing this to games is important to have the transition into the score after," Pezlj said. "It really helps the team too."

Pezelj has also demonstrated an ability to change up attacks.

"I think, at first, the coaches told me just to change where I was headed to change direction," Pezlj said. 

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo.

PITTSBURGH - The reality is that many things in college sports will be considerably different five years from now than they are today. But UMBC women's volleyball coach Kasey Crider provided a reminder of why it is important to keep the little schools involved in the postseason picture.

Crider -- along with players Hannah Dobbs and Hannah Howard -- shook the hands of everyone in the room following their press conference after a 3-0 defeat at the hands of No. 1 seed Pitt at Petersen Events Center. The Retrievers -- who finished 13-12 and qualified by winning the America East Conference for the fifth time in six years -- were thrilled to be involved.

"I'm just so impressed with this place and what volleyball has become here," Crider said. "It's not just what (Pitt head coach) Dan (Fisher) and Kellen (Petrone) and the staff and program has done. It's how the city has embraced the sport and is taking it very seriously. This event is the perfect example of that."

The battle surrounding the College Football Playoff has highlighted the unhappiness with some of the larger schools about having automatic qualifiers. While football is different -- there are only 12 teams selected and the format is new -- the battle of mid-major schools roles in the playoffs has also come under attack in basketball. There is some thought that some of the larger conferences -- like the Big 10 and SEC -- may eventually choose to break away from the NCAA entirely.

That decision could lock out a program like UMBC. The Retrievers men's basketball program shocked the sports world in 2018 when they became the first No. 16 seed to upset a No. 1 seed when they knocked off Virginia. For athletes who goes to smaller schools, who doesn't like trying to slay Goliath.

UMBC had a formidable opponent to try and knock off its feet in the first round. The Panthers have advanced past the first round the previous 10 seasons. Pitt hasn't dropped a set in their first NCAA match since 2017, when it beat VCU 3-1 at Penn State.

The Panthers' monster offensive machine is led by Olivia Babcock, who was chosen as the top layer in college volleyball last season and is a contender to win the award again this season. Babcock finished with 13 kills against the Retrievers and has 558 on the season, which is a program record.

"I feel like when we went in there, we weren't scared," Howard said. "We have our practice players who are boys and swinging at us all week like as hard as they could. I really think that helped us to stay strong back there. We didn't want to be scared. She's the best arm we played against. I think we had a lot of practice helped us stay strong back there."

Crider didn't come to Pittsburgh with a steadfast belief that UMBC would spring an upset. He wanted the Retrievers to stick to their principles and attempt to make the Panthers work to move on to the next round.

UMBC wanted to represent itself well on the big stage. The Retrievers did it their way.

"One of the core principles of what we do is 'Hey, we're going to deal in reality.'," Crider said. "We can't deal in too much fluffy stuff and try to to fake it. We know that they are favored for a reason. So, we acknowledge that. I don't think that you have to dwell on it.  There's some things that we do, some activities, some principles, some values, all these things it got you here. It would be a shame if you kinda let go of those things just because the arena got a little bigger, the lights got a little brighter, the DJ got a little more wild or whatever."
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Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted on X @JoshRizzo or via email at [email protected].

The Pitt women's volleyball team will have a home path to the NCAA Division I women's volleyball national semifinals. The Panthers were chosen as one of the four top seeds for this season's tournament. Pitt has reached the national semifinals in four consecutive seasons.

In three of those seasons, 2021, 2023 and 2024, Pitt played at home all the way to the semifinals. In 2022, Pitt took a detour through Madison, Wisc., on its way to the final four. The Panthers have yet to advance to the national championship match.

Pitt lost to host Louisville in the semifinals last season. The Panthers are 26-4 this season and finished 18-2 in ACC play. Pitt shared the conference title with Stanford, which beat the Panthers in five sets this season. Pitt will open this tournament with a matchup with UMBC.

The Panthers swept UMBC in the first round in 2021.

Pitt women's volleyball had designs on getting a win back. While the No. 6 Panthers' 3-2 win over fourth-ranked Louisville Sunday on the road won't make up for the loss in the NCAA Division I semifinals last season, it gave Pitt another gutty victory.

Olivia Babcock, the reigning volleyball player of the year, showed why the Panthers' offense can be so potent. Babcock recorded a program record 41 kills in the win. Pitt (15-3, 7-1) had to rally after dropping the second and third sets.

The Panthers were on their heels all weekend. During a 3-2 win over Notre Dame Friday night, the Panthers had to complete a reverse sweep to come away with the win.

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo.

The Pitt women's volleyball team has continued to rack up wins after a difficult start. The No. 5 Panthers beat the defending national champions and 13th-ranked Penn State Wednesday night at Rec Hall.

Pitt only committed 19 errors and hit .299 during a 25-23, 25-17, 23-25, 25-17 win over the Nittany Lions. Olivia Babcock led the Panthers with 16 kills, while Dagmar Mourits and Rylan Jones contributed 13 and nine, respectively.

Jones also added a team-high nine blocks. Pitt is now 8-2 on the season.

The Pitt women's volleyball team has shown it is still a force to be reckoned with over the previous two weeks. The No. 7 Panthers won their fifth consecutive match Wednesday night at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas. Pitt swept No. 3 Kentucky, a team it beat in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division I women's volleyball tournament last season, 25-19, 25-22, 25-23 during the Shriners Childrens Showdown at the Net.

Olivia Babock led the Panthers with 15 kills. Dagmar Mourits contributed 13 kills for Pitt. 

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo.

PITTSBURGH - Pitt women's volleyball coach Dan Fisher hopes that as the sport continues to grow in popularity that teams won't be afraid to meet in tough non-conference matches. The Panthers, who fell from third to ninth over the weekend in the rankings, bolstered their resume by beating No. 25 TCU and No. 7 Arizona State.

Both TCU and Arizona State got a boost from knocking off defending NCAA champion Penn State. The Horned Frogs knocked off the Nittany Lions in five sets before the Pitt-Arizona State match.

PITTSBURGH - Becca Kelley and Bre Kelley exchanged plenty of talk heading into the matchup between the Pitt and TCU women's volleyball teams Sunday at the State Farm Volleyball Showcase.

The two sisters from Rockwall, Texas, were opponents for the first time. Bre and the third-ranked Panthers came away with a four-set win over the Horned Frogs. TCU, which was ranked No. 25, entered the season ranked for the first time in program history.

"Honestly, it fun," Bre Kelley said. "But also intimidating. The smack talk leading up to the game was intense. I just knew with the work being done and the way we were blocking that I would do good against her."

Bre ended up blocking Becca three times during the match. Becca, who is 6-foot-3, knew hitting over her sister, who is 6-4 wouldn't be easy.

"Brie's a giant," Becca said. "She's really, really good at volleyball, so there was definitely some high pressure there, but also just a lot, a lot of excitement to like go out there and be a dragon. That's one of our main things as a team, is to play as dragons and so a couple of those balls, I was really going for her hands to hit really hard and so, I mean, it was a great battle. She got those three step blocks on me, but there's always another opportunity to play her deeper into the season, so I'm excited for that."

Bre and Becca Kelley earned up being like a lot of athletes during the current climate of college sports. Both went far from home to different colleges after their time in Rockwall, Texas. Each chose to migrate to other programs.

Becca went to Oregon and didn't appear in any matches. She chose to come close to home and play at Texas Christian University, which is 59 miles from her hometown. Bre chose to head southeast and play for Florida. Once Bre left the Gators, she migrated north to Pittsburgh, about 1,590 miles from home.

​Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo

The Pitt women's volleyball team hasn't shied away from playing a demanding non-conference schedule as the program's prestige has grown in the past half-decade. But the Panthers suffered heavy roster losses from their team that reached their fourth straight NCAA Division I women's volleyball tournament semifinal last season.

No. 3 Pitt lost to No. 16 Florida in five sets Sunday as part of the American Volleyball Coaches Association First Serve Showcase in Lincoln, Neb. The Panthers also lost to No. 1 Nebraska on Friday night. Pitt is off to its first 0-2 start since 2020.

The Panthers only lost two matches last season. Pitt's schedule won't lighten up soon. The Panthers' next two matches will be played at PPG Paints Arena on Labor Day weekend. Pitt will play No. 23 Texas Christian on Sunday, and have a matchup with No. 13 Arizona State on Labor Day.

The Panthers were hit hard with losses, including seeing one of their top hitters, Torey Stafford, transfer to Texas. Pitt also lost all-American setter Rachel Fairbanks to graduation. Olivia Babcock, who was named AVCA Player of the Year last season, leads the Panthers with 46 kills.

Dagmar Mourits, a freshman from the Netherlands, is second with 19.

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo.