Cavaliers Down Ohio State In Five-Set Marathon

COLUMBUS, Ohio – To open the Sports Import Classic, the Virginia volleyball team (6-3) topped Ohio State (2-5) in five sets (15-25, 25-20, 25-7, 23-25, 15-12) at the Covelli Center on Friday night (Sept. 19).

Becca Wight, a native of Worthington, Ohio, led the Cavalier attack with 13 kills to match Ohio State’s Hannah Jones for the match high. Wight’s 13 kills came on 20 attempts for a .650 hitting percentage. To go along with Wight’s 13 kills, Jasmine Robinson had 10 of her own and hit .529 in the victory.

On defense, Kate Dean tallied a season-high seven blocks, while Teagan Hogan recorded a new career-high with 15 digs. Hannah Scott had a career night from the service line with four aces.

HOW IT HAPPENED 

Set 1: Ohio State 25, Virginia 15

The opening set of the weekend saw the homestanding Buckeyes tally seven of the first 10 points of the game. Virginia stormed back to take its first lead of the evening at 9-7 with a 6-0 run that was punctuated with a Zooey Dood service ace that forced an Ohio State timeout. A Reagan Ennist service ace put the Cavaliers up 11-9 before Ohio State strung together a 12-2 run to take control of the first set.

Set 2: Virginia 25, Ohio State 20

Virginia flipped the script in the second set as the visiting Cavaliers sprinted out to an 8-3 advantage that was fueled by Robinson. Ohio State clawed its way back into the set and got to within a point at 20-19 before the Cavaliers notched five of the last six points to take the game.

Set 3: Virginia 25, Ohio State 7

In a set that Virginia dominated, the Cavaliers picked up five of the first six points in the game. A UVA service error brought Ohio State to within three at 9-6 before the Cavaliers collected 16 of the final 17 points in the set. The impressive final run was fueled by a pair of service aces from Katie Barrier and Scott.

Set 4: Ohio State 25, Virginia 23

Virginia’s hot streak continued into the fourth set as the Cavaliers nabbed the first six points of the set before a Jones kill got Ohio State on the board and ended the UVA run at 17 consecutive points. After trading points through the heart of the set, the Buckeyes took the upper hand with a service ace at 17-16. Ohio State forced a fifth set on a pair of kills from Jones.

Set 5: Virginia 15, Ohio State 12

The fifth and final set opened with the two squads jousted to a 3-3 tie before UVA claimed four consecutive points to take a 7-4 edge. Ohio State pulled within a point at 8-7 prior to another 3-0 run that stretched the UVA lead to 11-7. Virginia claimed the set and the match on Wight’s 13th kill of the evening.

WITH THE WIN

• Virginia improves to 1-1 all-time against Ohio State.
• UVA earns its second victory over a Big 10 team this season. The Cavaliers entered the 2025 campaign with a record of 0-35 all-time against teams in the Big 10.
• The Cavaliers are now 2-1 in five-set matches this season.

 MATCH NOTES

• Dean’s seven total blocks tied for the most by a Cavalier this season.
• Virginia’s nine service aces on Friday are the most by the team this year.

UP NEXT

For the final non-conference match of the season, Virginia will close out the Sports Import Classic against Troy. The match is slated for a 3 p.m. first serve on Saturday (Sept. 20) and can be streamed on Big Ten Plus.