Virginia Falls 3-1 at Duke
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Box Score Oct. 15, 2016
DURHAM, N.C. – The Virginia volleyball team fell 3-1 (25-20, 28-30, 25-23, 25-20) to Duke on Saturday night at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
It was another close match between the two teams with each set decided by five points or less and one requiring extra points. Virginia (4-16, 1-7 ACC) was out-hit by Duke (13-5, 7-1 ACC) .220-.174. The Blue Devils also led in blocks (10.5-9.0) and aces (3-2), while the Cavaliers had a 97-95 edge in digs.
“We were in a battle all night and worked extremely hard from the first point,” head coach Dennis Hohenshelt said. “We could have rolled over after the disappointment from last night and getting in late from Wake. As a team, these guys gave us a great effort. I see improvement ever time we step on the court.”
Nine different players recorded a kill for UVA, led by seniors Jasmine Burton (West Hills, Calif.) and Haley Kole (Tallahassee, Fla.) with 15 kills apiece. Kole tallied a double-double, adding 15 digs. Freshman Jennifer Wineholt (San Diego, Calif.) also picked up a double-double with a career-high 52 assists and 13 digs.
“Jasmine (Burton) was fantastic tonight and she is starting to get in a great rhythm with Jenn (Wineholt),” Hohenshelt said. “She had some big swings for us tonight.”
Senior Lexi Riccolo (Wheaton, Ill.) recorded a career-best 30 digs, the first time since 2012 a UVA played has had 30 or more digs in a match. Freshman Kelsey Miller (Crestwood, Ky.) tallied a career-high 18 digs and freshman Jane Horner (Mission Viejo, Calif.) had 10. Nine players picked up at least one block.
Virginia trailed 14-7 in the first set when the Cavaliers climbed back in with a 7-2 run to cut Duke’s lead to 16-14. The Blue Devils stretched their lead back to six and UVA used back-to-back blocks followed by a kill from Kole to cut it to three but couldn’t get any closer as Duke took the first set 25-20.
The second set began with six ties until two-straight points gave Duke an 8-6 edge. Virginia cut it to 11-10 but a 5-0 put the Blue Devils up 16-10. Down 20-15, UVA put together a 6-0 run to take the lead 21-20. Duke tied it up at 21-21 as the teams began trading points with eight more ties until an error then a kill by Riccolo gave the Cavaliers a 30-28 win to tie the match at 1-1.
In the third set, Virginia was trailing 6-4 before a 4-1 run gave the Cavaliers the lead, 8-6. A kill by freshman Kiley Banker (West Lafayette, Ind.) gave UVA an 11-8 advantage, but Duke scored six-straight points to regain the lead 14-11. Virginia called timeout down 23-18 and rallied with a 4-0 run to cut the lead to one, however Duke held on to win the set 25-23.
Duke jumped out to a 5-1 lead in the fourth and continued to lead 8-4. Back-to-back kills by sophomore Harley Sebastian (Atlanta, Ga.) and Banker cut it to two, but Duke stretched its lead out to 16-10 as UVA called timeout. The Cavaliers then used a 5-1 run to cut it to 17-15 and force a Duke timeout. The Blue Devils responded with a 3-0 run and went on to secure the match with a 25-20 win.
“I look forward to getting back in the gym and getting better for next weekend in front of our fans,” Hohenshelt said.
Virginia returns home next weekend to host No. 15 Florida State on Friday, Oct. 21 and Miami on Saturday, Oct. 22 in Memorial Gymnasium.