Pittsburgh ends Kentucky volleyball’s NCAA Tournament run in the Elite Eight

Kentucky volleyball’s 2024 season ended one win shy of the chance to play a Final Four in its home state.

The No. 3 seed Wildcats fell in straight sets (25-22, 25-23, 25-17) to No. 1 seed Pittsburgh to finish the season at 23-8. Host Pittsburgh advanced to the Final Four, which will be played at the KFC Yum Center in Louisville, at 33-1.

While Kentucky was unable to win a set in the match, the first two were close throughout. The Wildcats trailed 20-14 at one point in the first set before rallying to pull within one at 23-22. After Pittsburgh scored the final two points to clinch the first set, UK jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the second. Kentucky led that set 22-16 before Pittsburgh used a 7-0 run to take its first lead of the set at 23-22. UK tied the set at 23 before Pittsburgh closed it out with back-to-back points for a 2-0 lead in the match.

Pittsburgh took control of the decisive third set with a 4-0 run that turned a 13-12 advantage into a 17-12 one.

Even reaching the Elite Eight looked unlikely for Kentucky when the Wildcats, who were ranked No. 9 in the preseason poll, dropped four straight matches in September to fall to 6-6 on the season. Five of those six losses came against top-10 teams. Kentucky lost just one more match in the regular season and entered the NCAA Tournament on a 11-match winning streak.

Along the way, UK won its eighth consecutive SEC championship, including its fifth outright title in that run. UK’s Craig Skinner was named SEC Coach of the Year. Outside hitter Brooklyn DeLeye was named SEC Player of the Year.