Volleyball: Cavaliers earn sweep for second win over Hokies this week

Courtesy UVA Media Relations

The Virginia volleyball team claimed a 3-0 (25-21, 25-19, 25-13) victory over the Virginia Tech Hokies on Friday afternoon at Cassell Coliseum.

With the win, the Cavaliers (19-6, 9-5 ACC) have won six straight matches over the Hokies in the Smithfield Commonwealth Clash dating back to 2022. The win also gives UVA 19 victories on the season, which is the most since 2006.

Lauryn Bowie had a match-high 13 kills and only one attack error on 18 swings (.667 hitting percentage) to lead the UVA attack during the Friday matinee. Becca Wight added 10 more kills of her to aid the Cavalier offense. On the defensive side, Kate Dean led all players with a quartet of blocks while Milan Gomillion had 16 digs in her return.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Set 1: Virginia 25, Virginia Tech 21
Riding the hot arm of Bowie, the Cavaliers sprinted out to a 5-1 advantage in the early going of the opening set. Virginia Tech (7-17, 1-13) battled back to tie the set at 11-11 before a 3-0 UVA run powered by Kate Dean put the Cavaliers front for good. A late surge by the Hokies was thwarted when Dean and Brooklyn Borum teamed up to end the set with a block.

Set 2:  Virginia 25, Virginia Tech 19
In a set that was bookended with service aces by Ashley Le and Borum, the Cavaliers jumped out to a 5-0 lead and held control throughout the set. Virginia Tech got to within two points at 20-18 before UVA tallied five of the last six points to claim the set.

Set 3: Virginia 25, Virginia Tech 13
Virginia engineered an 11-1 run in the middle of the final set to give the Cavaliers their largest lead of the afternoon at 18-7. A Hokie comeback fell short as Virginia Tech could only get the UVA advantage down to 19-12. A match-point ace from Kate Johnson highlighted the final UVA run of the afternoon as the visiting Cavaliers scored the final three points of the match.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

• Virginia’s 50 kills against the Hokies are the most over an ACC opponent since recording 52 against Boston College in 2015.
• Brooklyn Borum led all players with two service aces.
• UVA had a 6.0-2.0 block advantage over Virginia Tech.

WITH THE WIN…

• The 19 wins on the season are the most for Virginia since 2006, when UVA had 23 in 2006.
• The nine ACC wins are the most in a season since winning 10 league matches in 2015.
• Friday’s sweep is UVA’s eight of the season, the most in a season since 2008.
• Virginia now leads the all-time series with Virginia Tech 43-40 and is riding a six-match win streak over the Hokies.
• The six-match win streak is the longest for Virginia over Virginia Tech since winning seven-straight from 1995-01.

UP NEXT

Virginia will return to action on Nov. 14 as the Cavaliers head west for matches against No. 6 Stanford and Cal. Both matches can be streamed on ACCNX.