CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Virginia volleyball team (0-1) fell in a four-set match (21-25, 21-25, 25-22, 21-25) to the American Eagles (2-1) at John Paul Jones Arena on Sunday (Aug. 30) in the squad’s season opener.
Reese Wuebker paced the Cavalier offense on Sunday with a match-high 18 kills in her UVA debut. Lauryn Bowie joined Wuebker in double digits by killing 14 balls of her own. Defensively, Meredith Reeg collected 14 digs, while Emily Fowler tallied six blocks, both match highs.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Set 1: American 25, Virginia 21
In the opening frame, the Eagles grabbed nine of the first 14 points. American led by as many as seven at 20-13 before Virginia stormed back with a 6-0 run that cut the deficit to one and forced a timeout. Following the break, the Eagles ended the set by claiming five of the final seven points.
Set 2: American 25, Virginia 21
The two squads traded points to a 7-7 tie before American took control with a 6-1 run. Following a Virginia timeout at 18-13, UVA scored five of the next seven points to cut the Eagle advantage to 20-18. American answered with a 4-0 run before putting the set away on a Prinzez Zeck kill.
Set 3: Virginia 25, American 22
After playing to a 9-9 tie, Virginia tallied six of the next nine points to post a 15-12 advantage at the media timeout. After fending off an Eagle comeback, UVA seized control of the game with a 5-0 run that was highlighted by a Ruby McDermott service ace that made it 20-16. The Cavaliers claimed the set with a Reese Wuebker kill.
Set 4: American 25, Virginia 21
In the fourth and final game of the evening, American took a 15-13 lead at the media timeout with a 6-2 run. UVA rallied and took a brief 20-19 lead on an Eagle ball-handling error. American scored six of the final seven points of the contest and won the match with a service ace.
MATCH NOTES
- UVA moves to 30-18 all-time in season openers.
- American improves to 1-3 all-time against Virginia.
- All seven newcomers on the Virginia roster saw action in the season opener.
- Each team had eight blocks in the contest.
- Virginia tallied seven service aces to American’s six.
FROM HEAD COACH SHANNON WELLS
“My message to the athletes was that we have a lot of people playing new positions and a lot of young stuff going on. I am really proud of some of the things that we did and kudos to American. We want to get better. I thought American put us in some tough situations and challenged us. We have some really great film and things to get better at on the volleyball court.”