Virginia Defeats Notre Dame, 3-1, for Second Straight ACC Win
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Oct. 27, 2013
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CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va.—The Virginia volleyball came from behind to defeat Notre Dame, 23-25, 25-17, 25-15 and 25-23, to win its second consecutive ACC victory Sunday afternoon (Oct. 27) at Memorial Gymnasium. It is the first time UVa (12-10, 5-5 ACC) has earned back-to-back conference wins since Nov. 11-12, 2011 (wins over Boston College and Maryland).
“The match had some ebbs and flows to it, where we played well in the first set before breaking down, but then played great in the second and third sets before coming out flat at the start of the fourth,” head coach Dennis Hohenshelt said. “We just have to be better at taking care of the ball at times, but I’m excited for this team. We’ve been playing some solid volleyball and if we keep this up, we’re going to beat some teams.”
Senior Emily Rottman (Santa Barbara, Calif.) recorded 15 digs and moved into a tie with Whitney Ashcraft (2000-03) for third place on the UVa career digs list with 1,603.
On the Virginia freshman kills list, first-year Haley Kole (Tallahassee, Fla.) moved up to sixth place with 12 kills today and now has 305 for the season.
Junior Tori Janowski (Sterling, Va.) led the Cavaliers Sunday with 22 kills on .474 hitting, while classmate Mallory Woolridge (Glen Allen, Va.) hit .556 with 11 kills. Freshman Jasmine Burton (White Hills, Calif.) added 11 kills.
Sophomore Lauren Fuller (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) hit the 50-assist mark for the second straight match, earning 51 assists to go along with eight digs and four kills.
In the first set, both teams hit well, with the Irish at a .412 percentage to UVa’s .341, but Notre Dame claimed the last four points to win the frame, 25-23.
The Cavaliers hit 14 kills in the second set at a .478 clip and held Notre Dame to .077 hitting on the way to a 25-17 win.
UVa continued its pressure in the third set, hitting .481 with 14 kills and only one error en route to a 25-15 victory.
In the fourth, Notre Dame opened up a 17-12 advantage, but the Cavaliers won seven of the next eight points to take a 19-18 lead. With the score tied at 22, Janowski and Woolridge kills earned the Cavaliers a couple of match points and Kole put the match away with her 12th kill of the day.
The Irish had three players with 10 or more kills, including Jeni Houser, who hit .346 with 11 kills and six blocks.
The Cavaliers travel to Georgia Tech and Clemson next weekend (Nov. 1-2). Both matches are set for 6 p.m. starts.