UVA opens 2020 season Friday against The Citadel

Courtesy UVA Media Relations

Virginia volleyball opens its 2020 campaign on Friday when the Cavaliers host The Citadel at 6 p.m. in Memorial Gymnasium.

Due to health and safety considerations in addition to the current guidelines established for sports venues by the Commonwealth of Virginia, attendance at UVA home competitions is limited to family of student-athletes and each team’s coaching staff until further notice. There is no public admission to these events and all tailgating in University parking lots is prohibited.

MEDIA COVERAGE

Friday night’s match will air on ACCNX. A link to the broadcast is available on VirginiaSports.com. Fans can also follow along on social media (@UVAvolleyball) or via live stats.

FIRST SERVE

  • Virginia plays the first of nine scheduled matches this fall when The Citadel (0-1) visits on Friday
  • The Cavaliers and Bulldogs are meeting for the first time on the volleyball court
  • Virginia returns 12 players from the 2019 roster
  • UVA added five freshmen as part of a recruiting class that earned highest honorable mentions
  • In the attack, the Hoos welcome back senior Sarah Billiard who racked up 282 kills in 2019 and is 127 terminations away from becoming the 20th member of Virginia’s 1,000-kill club
  • The Cavaliers will own a veteran presence with four seniors likely to start in Friday’s season opener
  • Sophomore Mattison Matthews returns at middle blocker after posting the second-highest hitting percentage (.382) in Virginia history

LOOKING BACK

  • Despite suffering injuries to four starters in the 2019 season, Virginia ended the year with back-to-back sweeps and posted its most wins since the 2015 season
  • The Cavaliers posted a 9-7 mark inside Memorial Gym in 2019, the most home wins since 2015
  • Virginia continued its run of offensive improvement, posting a third-straight year of increase in hitting percentage
  • The Hoos continued a strong run of blocking in 2019, averaging 2.34 per set to rank sixth in the ACC

BILLIARD ONE OF THE BEST

  • Senior Sarah Billiard needs 137 kills to become 20th Cavalier to reach 1,000 career kills
  • With a 2.99 career kills/set average, Billiard ranks among the top 10 in UVA history
  • Billiard has finished top three on the team in kills in each of her three seasons

A VETERAN HELPER

  • Senior Megan Wilson is already among the top 10 in program history for assists with 2,116
  • Wilson has been a starter for the Cavaliers in each of the three prior seasons and is poised to be the primary setter once more in 2020
  • Wilson needs just 143 assists to move into sixth all-time at Virginia

MIDDLE MASTERY

  • Over the past two seasons, Virginia has owned one of the most potent lineups of middle blockers in the ACC
  • In 2019 Ciprian and Matthews each ranked among the top 10 in the ACC in hitting percentage
  • The pair combined for 315 kills and 202 blocks, playing a part in 35-percent of Virginia’s points scored
  • The pair have already claimed top 10 marks at UVA in 14 single-season, match or freshman categories

UP NEXT FOR THE HOOS

  • UVA takes a two-week break before opening ACC action at home against Duke (Oct. 2)
  • The Cavaliers and Blue Devils will meet in back-to-back days inside Memorial Gymnasium
  • The pair of matches will mark the beginning of a four-week ACC season during October