Rivalry Win Leaves Hoos in High Spirits

By Jeff White (jwhite@virginia.edu)
VirginiaSports.com

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Little came easily for the University of Virginia volleyball team in the fourth set Wednesday night at Memorial Gymnasium, but after a few tense moments the home fans headed home happy.

In the first of two Smithfield Commonwealth Clash matches this week, UVA took the fourth set 25-23 to secure a 3-1 victory over Virginia Tech. It was only fitting that right-side hitter Lauryn Bowie clinched the win with her 10^th kill of the evening.

Bowie, who’s in her fourth year in the program, improved to 7-0 against the Hokies as a Cavalier, as did classmate Meredith Reeg.

“I think we really showed all of the hard work that we've been putting in in the gym,” Bowie said, “and it was such a great team win.”

The teams meet again Friday at 6 p.m. in Blacksburg, where the Hoos will look to win their 10^th straight in the series.

“Who doesn’t want to win a rivalry match?” Bowie said after the Wahoos posed for a celebratory photo with the Commonwealth Clash sign. “As a fourth-year, going undefeated against Tech would make my college career.”

The Final Blow😤 #GoHoos https://t.co/VwWFdcGvKs

— Virginia Volleyball (@UVAVolleyball) October 15, 2026

The Cavaliers are in their sixth year under head coach Shannon Wells, whose record against the Hokies is 9-1. Wells came into the season optimistic about her team’s prospects, but the first six weeks have proved challenging for Virginia (6-10 overall, 2-5 ACC).

“We're young and we're playing really good teams,” Wells said. “And so we're earning our confidence, earning opportunities to win, but this is a battle-tested team that's ready to compete.”

Through all the adversity, Bowie said, the Cavaliers’ spirits haven’t lagged. “We just love each other so much, and the care that we have for not only each other but for this program has kept us motivated.”

UVA’s upcoming schedule looks more forgiving, “and so we feel these next two weeks are really important for us,” Wells said. “In two weeks' time, we could be 5-5 [in the ACC].”

Injuries have hindered the Hoos. Against the Hokies (4-12, 1-6), Virginia played without two of its top three outside hitters: second-year Reagan Ennist and first-year Ella Brodner.

Neither will be available in Blacksburg either, Wells said. “So what you see is what you get [for the rematch].”

With Ennist and Brodner out, first-year MaryGrace Gonyeau made her first start Wednesday night. The 6-foot-1 Gonyeau grew stronger as the match went on and finished with season highs in kills (10), digs (five) and blocks (three).

“MG's a dog,” Bowie said, smiling. “We see it every day in practice. Not one person was doubting her performance. We knew she was going to come in and ball out. Coming in as a freshman and having the veteran swing she had is so impressive to us.”

UVA won the first set 25-19 and the second 25-19. With an opportunity to sweep the Hokies, however, the Hoos faltered in the third, losing 25-22. Virginia had eight service errors in that set.

When the Hokies went up 14-9 in the fourth, a winner-take-all fifth set seemed like a distinct possibility. But the Cavaliers steadied themselves and battled back into the match. They went ahead to stay, at 21-20, on a kill by second-year middle hitter Caroline Lang.

“I thought the difference in the fourth set is we made some errors at the end and we just moved on,” Wells said. “We brought back that maturity we saw in the first and second set.”

+0.5 #GoHoos https://t.co/T5QYFTh5U0

— Virginia Volleyball (@UVAVolleyball) October 15, 2026

For the Cavaliers, the match was only their third of the season at Mem Gym. The venerable building was closed for renovations in December 2024, and for the next 21 months the volleyball team practiced at North Grounds Recreation Center and played its home matches at the Aquatic & Fitness Center and John Paul Jones Arena.

Construction is still ongoing at Mem Gym, but the volleyball program’s locker room is complete, and the Cavaliers moved back in before their matches against Duke and North Carolina last weekend.

“It's amazing,” Bowie said. “Mem is our home, for one, but having a place where we can come and have a locker room and hang out with each other, that's just been so nice for us. But it’s also about setting a new tone for Mem Gym and showing what a winning program looks like in here.”

After seven seasons on the staff at the University of Florida—the last four as associate head coach—Wells came to UVA in April 2021. She took over a program that had dropped eight of its previous 11 matches with Virginia Tech, and reversing that trend was one of her top priorities.

“I know it’s important to our fans,” Wells said Wednesday night, “and kudos to the fans who came out.”

Crowd support fueled the Hoos in the first two sets and helped them finish off the Hokies in the fourth.

“I don't know if everyone knows volleyball, but they know the Virginia-Virginia Tech rivalry, and so it just means a lot,” Wells said. “I'm really proud of the way that our team competed, and Virginia Tech, too.”

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