Louisville Volleyball advances to NCAA Finals

December 19, 2024

The Louisville Cardinals volleyball team has made it to the championship game after defeating the top-seeded Pittsburgh Panthers 3-1 in the national semifinals. This is Louisville’s second NCAA volleyball championship berth in three years. In the semifinal match, Pittsburgh took the first set 25-21, but Louisville fought back to win the next three sets, 25-23, 29-27, and 25-17. ACC Freshman of the Year Nayelis Cabello shined for the Cards with 44 assists. Payton Petersen entered the game after Anna DeBeer suffered an injury and helped keep the momentum going. Olivia Babcock led Pittsburgh with a career-high 33 kills, while Torrey Stafford added 18 kills and 14 digs. Louisville’s win was a thrilling comeback in front of 21,726 fans and the team saved four set points in the third set to take a 2-1 lead.

The Cardinals will now face Penn State in the championship game on Sunday on December 22nd at 3 p.m. ET at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, KY. The match will air on ABC.

Photo Gallery by Xavier Burrell