Hoos Drop Hard-Fought Battle to Miami
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CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. The Virginia volleyball team (7-5, 2-1 ACC) rounded out its Atlantic Coast Conference homestand Friday with a hard-fought 3-2 loss to Miami before near capacity crowd at Memorial Gymnasium. Game scores were 35-33, 28-30, 28-30, 30-27 and 8-15.
“We did not play our best tonight,” UVa head coach Melissa Aldrich Shelton said. “We had a lot of inconsistencies. I think we just kind of expected Miami to roll over and they did not. We knew Miami was going to be tough to beat and we didn’t step up to the plate.”
Sarah Kirkwood paced the Cavaliers with a match-high 26 kills and teammate Lauren Dickson added 24. Virginia hit .220 for the match, compared to a .227 hitting percentage for Miami. Genny Meyhew led the Hurricanes with 25 kills.
“I think it was a lot of small things,” Kirkwood said about the loss. “You have to give a ton of credit to Miami. They played out-of-their-minds.”
Kelly Irvin posted a season-high 41 assists for UVa while Marlow Bruneau added 22 helpers.
Defensively, Melissa Caldwell tied a match-high with 23 digs. Beth Shelton and Kirkwood added 12 a piece and Dickson finished with nine. Katie Oakes and Shannon Davis also finished with six and five blocks, respectively.
The first game of the match started off in exciting fashion. The Cavaliers held a six-point lead at one time during the game. However, Miami answered back with four straight points, bringing them within two at 18-16. The Hurricanes eventually tied the game up 20-20, the first of five ties in the second half of the contest. The two teams fought bitterly for the remainder of the game, but both the strong offensive and defensive efforts by the Cavaliers put them on top 35-33.
The Hurricanes responded with a powerful attacking in the second game and went on to claim a 30-28 victory. The battle continued between the two teams deep into the third game. Virginia and Miami swapped the lead countless times throughout the contest. Although the score was tied at 28-28, the Hurricanes countered with two-straight points and came up victorious 30-28.
Despite an early 8-4 lead by the Canes in the fourth game, the Cavaliers countered with five points to put them ahead 9-4. However, following a strong offensive charge, Miami tied the game up 12-12. The Cavaliers again responded, this time with six consecutive points. Virginia was able to hold off the Hurricanes and win the game 30-27, tying the match 2-2.
In the fifth game, Virginia took a 7-4 lead but Miami scored eight straight points to go up 11-7 and the Hoos never caught up, dropping the game and the match.
The two teams will meet again Oct. 26 at 7 p.m. in Coral Gables, Fla.
The Cavaliers hit the road next week to continue conference play against Georgia Tech and Clemson. The match Friday against the Yellow Jackets begins at 7 p.m., while the Saturday match against Clemson begins at 6 p.m.