ORLANDO, Fla. - Virginia dropped a trio of tight sets in a 3-0 loss at UCF on Saturday.
Outside hitter Reagan Ennist led the Cavaliers (3-3) with 11 kills while setter Hannah Scott dished out 18 assists. For the Knights (7-1), outside hitter Avah Amour and rightside hitter Natasha Casey had ten kills a piece, while Casey also added seven aces.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Set 1: UCF 25, Virginia 22
UCF controlled a majority of the opening set and held a late 23-15 lead before a late 7-0 rally by Virginia cut the deficit to one. The Hoos capitalized on a pair of attack errors and a service error by UCF while kills by Reagan Ennist and Lauryn Bowie and a Katie Barrier ace field the comeback. The Knights responded with back-to-back kills by Sasha Cohen and Avah Amour to clinch it.
Set 2: UCF 25, Virginia 21
The Knights took a tight second set that saw no team lead by more than three until the final point. Virginia led 6-3 early on though UCF responded with a 4-0 run to claim a 7-6 lead. The teams were tied at 10-10, 11-11, 12-12, 13-13, 14-14, 15-15 and 16-16 before the Knights surged for the next three points. Virginia took the next two points on kills by Reese Wuebker and Ennist though the Knights closed the set with six of the final nine points.
Set 3: UCF 25, Virginia 21
Virginia jumped out to a 8-3 lead sparked by a pair of 3-0 runs, though the Knights stayed within striking distance and rattled off a 5-1 run to trim the Cavalier lead to 13-12. After a UCF service error, the Knights responded with the next seven points to pull ahead 19-14. A 4-0 Cavalier run, capped off by kills from Ennist and Wuebker, got the Hoos back within one, but UCF finished the set with six of the final nine points.
MATCH NOTES
- Fourth-year setter Hannah Scott totaled 18 assists - giving her 2,009 for her career. Her 2,000th career assist came in the second set on a Caroline Lang kill to make the score 9-9.
QUOTABLE
“I’m proud of the way we responded today. I thought we went for the win and played aggressive. We put ourselves in a position to beat a very good UCF team and weren’t able to make plays. We can fix that. We will get back in the gym and get better this week. I love the journey the team is on. The wins will come. We trust the process and the work we are putting in.” - head coach Shannon Wells.
NEXT UP
The Cavaliers return to the Aquatic & Fitness Center for a three-game home stand next week. UVA hosts George Washington on Tuesday before a pair of matches with Ohio State on Friday and Saturday.