The Cavalier volleyball team (19-6, 12-4 ACC) made quick work of Maryland and Boston College this weekend, defeating each team 3-0 on back-to-back nights. The two victories put Virginia alone at second in the ACC.
Friday's match against Maryland was more than just another home match. In front of a capacity crowd at Memorial Gym, senior setter Emily Kirkwood made school history. With the score 18-11 in favor of the Cavaliers in the first game, Kirkwood smacked a serve that cleared the net by a fraction of an inch and landed untouched by the outstretched hands of a diving Maryland player. This was service ace number 155 for Kirkwood's career, a new school record. She also fired two more aces against Boston College, bringing her total to 157.
"Everyone was pulling for me, and I knew I was one away," Kirkwood said. "I was just looking for my short serve; that's my serve, and I went for it."
Although Kirkwood is the sole record-holder for the moment, it may be short-lived. Emily Kirkwood's younger sister and fellow Cavalier, junior outside hitter Sarah Kirkwood, is close on her heals with 153 aces, and has another year of eligibility to potentially shatter her older sister's mark.
"There's always a sibling rivalry, but it helps that we play different positions," Emily Kirkwood said. "Her serve is so good, and she deserves the record. I'm glad to get it first though."
The career service ace mark was not the only record that was challenged over the weekend. The Cavaliers combined for 15 service aces in their match against Maryland, the third-highest total for a single match in Virginia history. The team's win over Boston College was their sixth straight victory over an ACC opponent, tying yet another school record; Virginia will have a chance to collect win number seven when they take on Florida State this Friday.
The crowd also left its mark in the record books; the 817 fans that turned out for the match against Maryland set a new record at Memorial Gym. With the crowd behind them, the Cavaliers did not disappoint, winning convincingly in all three games (30-18, 30-25, 30-20).
"Maryland has won the conference the last three years," Virginia coach Melissa Shelton said. "We have a lot of respect for that, and we wanted to come out and beat them. Beating them in three games is a great thing because Maryland was on a good run."
The Cavaliers rode this momentum into their match against Boston College, defeating them with similar ease (30-20, 30-25, 30-21). Sarah Kirkwood led all players in kills (15), while her four service aces added to her league-leading total for the season (44). Junior middle Katie Oakes also had a stellar performance, hitting for a .500 attack percentage with 14 kills in 28 attempts.
The weekend was certainly a successful one, both for the Kirkwood scrapbook and for the Cavaliers as a whole. The convincing manner in which the team knocked off Maryland and Boston College gives the team a momentum boost as they try to maintain their high level of performance.
"It's hard to beat a team in three games, and when you do that it really says something about how solid your ball control was throughout the entire match," Sarah Kirkwood said. "It's definitely going to give us a lot of confidence going into our second round of matches against the ACC."
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