The Virginia volleyball team has yet another long road trip this weekend, when it will head to the Sunshine State to take on conference foes Florida State and Miami. The Cavaliers will look to build off last Saturday's three-set victory against George Mason and keep their roller-coaster season on the up-and-up.
Virginia began the season as a somewhat transformed squad, carrying five freshmen, one transfer and a new assistant coach. The new faces have provided the team with renewed depth but also with inexperience. At first, players seemed to embrace the changes as they jumped out of the gate with a 5-0 record, the program's longest start-of-season winning streak since 2003.
"I think after the first five games of the season we were definitely on top of the world," sophomore middle hitter Jessica O'Shoney said.
Nevertheless, with tougher competition came a new five-game losing streak, including a heartbreaking loss to arch-rival Virginia Tech last weekend. Two of the losses have come in five-set matches,with the Cavaliers unable to find success during the fifth set - deemed a "toss-up" by coach Lee Maes. The other three came during a road trip out west, during which Virginia played three top-25 ranked teams. Southern California, Long Beach State and San Diego each took turns sweeping Virginia.
"The next five games afterwards were a wake-up call," O'Shoney said.
One part of the problem was the lack of a consistent lineup. Thankfully for the Cavaliers, that problem seemed to be solved during last Saturday's sweep of George Mason.
Although they possess a 0-1 conference record, the Cavaliers are confident they can defeat both the Seminoles and the Hurricanes this weekend. Florida State, which Virginia has not beaten since the 2007 season, will be the Cavaliers' fourth ranked opponent of the season. The Seminoles (9-2, 1-0 ACC) boast a lineup full of efficient hitters that has them sitting on a No. 13 national ranking.
"It's going to be up to us to pick it up on defense," junior outside hitter Simone Asque said.
The Cavaliers will then take on Miami this Sunday. The 'Canes (10-2, 0-1 ACC) are coming off a loss to Florida State, leaving them with the same conference record as the Cavaliers. But Virginia's defense must also stand tall against Miami, which leads the league in kills and assists. The squad ranks second in digs and hitting percentage, as well.
"The game will just come down to who wants it more and who's able to outwork every point," Asque said.
In addition to Asque, O'Shoney and freshman outside hitter McKenzie Adams will help to take on some of the offensive load.
"It's extremely important to have a balanced offensive attack," Maes said.
That balanced attack needs to combine with a solid defense anchored by senior defensive specialist AJ Cushman and freshman libero Emily Rottman.
Regardless of their mediocre 6-5 record, the Cavaliers understand that conference play reigns over all.
"I think it's been kind of up and down, but I think that will help our team," Asque said. "I almost would rather have us lose and learn from it than come in undefeated and not really know how to react to stressful games."
The long stretch of ACC play commences Friday night at 7 p.m. in Tallahassee, Fla.
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