DePaul’s volleyball, team coming off a grinding schedule of late, came into its match against Big East rival South Florida with a 2-7 record in the Big East and a 7-15 record overall.

Ten of its last 11 matchups have been against Big East opponents, of which they have only won two matches — however, DePaul returned home from a 1-1 road trip, highlighted by a solid 3-1 set victory against Villanova Oct. 19.

DePaul picked up its second Big East win in the last three matches with a win Friday night. After dropping the first set the Blue Demons would rally to win the next three sets, 21-25, 25-20, 25-14, 25-22. Vesela Zapryanova shined with 22 kills, a season high for any DePaul player, as Laura Witt pitched in 39 assists.

“I can’t do anything without my teammates. We came out and showed our best, hitting, blocking, everything,” said Zapryanova. “(Witt) was really important, every second ball goes through her. Our other setter went down and she was a great leader today.”

USF’s Erin Fairs and Kayla Walton started out strong, and DePaul struggled to find an answer for the heavy hitting Bulls (13-10, 5-5 in Big East) in the first set, who along with Fairs and Walton boast three total players with over 200 kills on the season.

DePaul countered with junior transfer and rising star Zapryanova, who coming into the match led the team in kills (264), kills per set (3.14) and total attempts (799).

Down 17-9 in the first set, head coach Nadia Edwards called a timeout to try to establish some order in her mistake-prone team. The team responded with a strong team effort, playing better defense and showing better play-making ability, as USF was forced to call a timeout after the Blue Demons closed the gap to 18-14.

DePaul played a competitive first set, refusing to go away quietly, but dropped the set 25-21. Showing the will to go stride for stride with South Florida, DePaul’s newfound competitiveness and energy carried over into the rest of the match.

Asked what she said during that crucial timeout, Edwards told her team to keep fighting.

“I told them in your head its gotta be 0-0, start playing like it,” said Edwards. “The girls really responded to that.”

After trailing in the second set, DePaul took their first lead at 19-18. The team was charged up as Callie Huebener and Zapryanova made key plays, Zapyanova pumping her fist with emotion while her teammates shook her in excitement. DePaul found themselves right back in the match with boosted confidence.

DePaul went on a run and never look back, taking the second set 25-20. Zapyanova had eight kills in the second set, while Huebener had a 1.000 attack percentage, hitting all four of her kills. Witt played a huge role, adding 15 assists in the second frame.

The third set was another successful team effort, a diverse group of players making key blocks, digs and kills. Once they got rolling, the Demons demonstrated a positive attitude and great chemistry, visibly enjoying their play. The result was a one-sided 25-14 set win.

For the second consecutive set, DePaul took the first three points of the fourth set, jumping out to an early lead. The Bulls continued to fight, but were no match to the Demons as Natalie Rizzo had three straight kills, and Zapryanova continued to pour in hard hit kills. DePaul prevailed in the fourth set, winning the final set 25-22 in an exciting Big East win.

“We’re getting better at the end of the season,” said Edwards, “and we’re ending on a high note, which was our goal.”