The Virginia volleyball team won its second-ever match against a nationally ranked opponent with its five-set defeat of No. 25 Florida State yesterday, closing out a weekend that began with a 3-1 victory against Miami Friday night.
Against the Hurricanes (17-7, 7-6 ACC), Virginia began with a 6-1 advantage in the first set. The Cavaliers (12-11, 6-7 ACC) pounded their opponents to take an 18-10 advantage - which Miami came close to equalizing, getting within three points, but coach Lee Maes' squad held on to win 25-21.
But the second set was marked by seven ties and two lead changes, and the Hurricanes prevailed. Virginia regained momentum in the third set after a pair of kills from junior outside hitter Simone Asque and freshman outside hitter McKenzie Adams. With the score 14-10, two Adams kills and two team blocks increased the lead to 18-10 before the Cavaliers finished the set 25-14. The fourth set resembled the second, with lead changes and ties to keep it close, but the Cavaliers came out on top, 25-20, to end the match.
"They demonstrated [that] as a team we have shown significant progress in our ability to play together and be more efficient," Maes said.
Offensively, Asque led the effort with 21 kills, nine of which came during the first set. Adams tallied her fifth career double-double pairing 18 kills with 12 digs while freshman libero Emily Rottman collected her third collegiate double-double with 14 kills and 13 digs. Senior defensive specialist A.J. Cushman led the defense with 27 digs, and Virginia managed 10.5 blocks, compared to just seven from Miami.
"We did well to take care of Miami's tendencies," Asque said. "Miami is a scrappy defensive team."
Against Florida State (15-8, 7-6 ACC), Virginia again established control early, this time claiming the first two sets 25-18, 25-13. During the first set, Virginia seized the lead early by scoring the first two points. Florida State tied the score 5-all, but the Cavaliers countered with a string of points to take a four-point lead, 11-7. The team continued to push its lead advantage by eight points. Asque led Virginia's first set effort with seven kills.
The team then cruised through the second set from the start. Virginia opened with seven consecutive points, taking a commanding lead. Florida State managed to close the margin to two, but Virginia regained its momentum and scored 12 of the next 14 points.
The Seminoles fought their way back into the match, however, winning the third and fourth sets by scores 25-18, 25-19. Junior outside hitter Visnja Djurdjevic, for example, tallied 13 kills and 11 digs in the third and fourth sets alone.
Florida State's comeback continued into a closely contested final set, but the Cavaliers eventually won, 16-14.
"At [the beginning of the set] we were trying to figure things out," Asque said. "We said, 'This is the one that counts. We don't care what happened in the other sets.'"
Rottman tallied her second double-double on the weekend with 10 kills and 19 digs, while Asque led the team with 20 kills.
Maes was proud of the resilience his team displayed in defeating a ranked opponent - the first since he took control of the helm and the first since 1996, when Virginia defeated Georgia Tech.
"We asked them to trust each other, their preparation and they kept their composure, which is great for an inexperienced team."
The Cavaliers return home to face Maryland and Boston College next weekend. Game time is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. Friday against the Terrapins and 7 p.m. Saturday.
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