Volleyball: UVA rallies in five sets to win at Wake Forest in ACC opener

Courtesy UVA Media Relations

After dropping the first two sets, Virginia came roaring back to knock off Wake Forest (13-25, 24-26, 25-23, 25-16, 15-7) at Reynolds Gymnasium in Winston-Salem Friday night.

With the win, the Hoos (11-1, 1-0 ACC) are off to their best start since 2004 and are riding an eight-match win streak for the first time since 2006. UVA also recorded its first win in an ACC opener since 2015.

Despite struggling to terminate the ball, the Cavaliers recorded eight service aces and 14 blocks to grind out the win.

Virginia was led by middle blockers Abby Tadder (11 kills, .308 Hit%, 6 blocks) and Kate Dean (8 kills, .294 Hit%, 5 blocks). On the right side, Lauryn Bowie (10 kills, 7 blocks) also contributed with a double-digit kill performance, and her seven blocks are a career high.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Set 1: Wake Forest 25, Virginia 13
Wake (8-4, 0-1) tallied five blocks in the opening set and held the Cavaliers to only eight kills at the net. The Demon Deacons also served up four aces from behind the service line while UVA had none. Wake, which hit .375 in the first, never trailed and scored the final eight points to close out the first.

Set 2: Wake Forest 26, Virginia 24
Virginia trailed for most of the early part of set No. 2, but secured its first lead of the match, 19-18. The two teams would exchange leads three more times and the Deacs had set points twice before a huge block by Abby Tadder and Zoey Dood knotted the set, 24-24. However, back-to-back Wake kills delivered the second set as it took a 2-0 lead into the intermission.

Set 3: Virginia 25, Wake Forest 23
UVA trailed by as many as four [9-5] early on in the third, but 5-1 and 6-1 runs, respectively, later in the set by the Cavaliers proved to be the difference. The Demon Deacons held a 19-18 lead late in the game when the Hoos registered kills on five of the next seven plays and ultimately led 24-20. UVA had set point when a Wake attack halted its 3-0 run and delivered the Cavaliers’ first set win of the match. Notable stats from set 3?

Set 4: Virginia 25, Wake Forest 16
Set No. 4 was highlighted by a combined six 3-0 runs by the two teams. However, it was the Cavaliers who trailed 12-10 when they embarked on an 8-1 run to take the lead [18-13] for good. UVA recorded six of its 14 total blocks in the fourth, including three by Bowie.

Set 5: Virginia 15, Wake Forest 7
Virginia carried its momentum into the fifth and held the Demon Deacons to only three kills while suffering five attack errors. Wake scored the first two points of the fifth, but that was its only lead the rest of the way. Bowie put down three of her five swings with no errors, including the final point on a set from Le. Wake burned both of its timeouts just two plays apart.

WITH THE WIN…

• Virginia is off to its best start (11-1) since 2003, when it won 13 straight matches to begin the season.
• It’s also only the third time in school history UVA has started 11-1 or better … other years include 1998 and 2003.
• The Cavaliers evened the all-time with Wake Forest, which began in 1980, 39-39. UVA is also now 11-16 all-time against the Demon Deacons in Winston-Salem.
• The Hoos notched their eighth consecutive win, the program’s first win streak of at least eight matches since 2006.
• UVA won its ACC opener for the first time since 2015, when it took down Duke in four sets in Durham.
• The Cavaliers are 4-0 in five-set matches this season and earned their first reverse sweep since defeating Virginia Tech at John Paul Jones Arena last season.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

• UVA posted six of its 14 total blocks in the fourth … its 14 blocks are second most in a single match this season.
• Lauryn Bowie finished with a career-high seven blocks, including two solo.
• With 11 kills, Abby Tadder has led UVA in kills in four matches this season.
• With three service aces, Kate Johnson eclipsed the 50-ace milestone for her career … Johnson now has 51 career aces.

UP NEXT

The Cavaliers conclude their first ACC road swing Sunday at NC State. First serve from Reynolds Coliseum is set for 1 p.m. on ACC Network Extra (ACCNX).