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Oct. 26, 2005
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – After playing its last four matches on the road, the University of Virginia volleyball team returns home to the friendly confines of Memorial Gym for a pair of Atlantic Coast Conference matches this weekend. The Cavaliers take on North Carolina at 7:00 p.m. Friday (October 28) and NC State Saturday (October 29) at 5:00 p.m. at Mem Gym. Admission is free of charge.
Virginia stands at 13-7 overall and 8-3 in the ACC. The Cavaliers had their school-record six-match ACC winning streak snapped with a heart-breaking 3-2 (30-20, 30-27, 17-30, 28-30, 22-20) loss at Georgia Tech in their last outing on October 22. With its 8-3 ACC mark, Virginia stands in fourth place in the conference after the first half of round-robin play. UVa is one game behind North Carolina and Georgia Tech in the ACC standings.
North Carolina is tied for second place in the ACC with a 9-2 record and is 14-7 overall. The Tar Heels posted a 3-0 (30-25, 30-23, 30-24) win over UVa in the first meeting between the two teams this season in Chapel Hill on September 24. UNC leads the all-time series with Virginia 30-10 and has won 13 of the last 15 meetings in the series. The Cavaliers won two of three meetings in the 2003 season to snap an 11-match slide against North Carolina.
Saturday’s opponent, NC State, is 7-12 overall and 1-10 in the ACC. UVa registered a 3-0 (30-23, 30-18, 30-22) victory over the Wolfpack on September 23 in Raleigh. The victory extended the Cavaliers’ winning streak over NC State to 20 consecutive matches dating back to the 1996 season. UVa leads the all-time series against the Wolfpack 26-19.
Second-year outside hitter Sarah Kirkwood (Tampa, Fla./Plant) is pacing the Cavaliers offensively. She leads the team with 332 kills (4.37 per game), a .316 hitting percentage and 42 service aces. Third-year outside hitter Lindsay Osco (Houston, Texas/Elkins) is second on the team with 217 kills (2.86 per game). Third-year setter Emily Kirkwood (Tampa, Fla./Plant) has handed out 897 assists for an average of 12.12 per game. First-year middle Shannon Davis (Austin, Texas/Westlake), who has registered new career highs in kills the last two matches, leads the Cavaliers in blocks with 62 (0.89 per game), while second-year libero Melissa Caldwell (Houston, Texas/Stratford) is tops in digs with 287 for an average of 3.78 per game.