Lady Hokies Sweep UVA In Volleyball ACC Opener

By David Cooper
September 24, 2008

The success of their first four tournaments must have been fresh in the minds of the Lady Hokies as they only needed three sets to knock off in-state and conference rival University of Virginia. 

The Lady Cavaliers fell behind early in the first set 5-1, but rallied to keep things close, matching Virginia Tech almost point for point in a set that went down to the wire.  After gaining a close lead towards the end of the first set, UVA fell behind again to Tech, 26-25.  

Taking a timeout to gain composure turned out to be a mistake for the Lady Cavaliers as they dropped the first set in disappointing fashion, 27-25.

Having known what it was like to gain an early lead and blow it within a few bad plays, the Lady Hokies came out firing in the second set to take a 9-4 lead led by the trio of Taylor Parrish, Felicia Willoughby and Justine Record.  Parrish had four kill shots on, while Willoughby had combined six blocks. 

Record recorded seven kill shots, most coming off of the assists of Erin Leaser, who recorded 37 assists on the night.  The strong supporting cast for Virginia Tech went on to take the second set with ease, 25-11.

Virginia looked to avoid losing in three consecutive sets but suffered the same rough start it had in set two.  Virginia Tech played tough defense, accumulating blocks on almost every other volley and limiting the points UVA scored. 

The Cavaliers maintained composure one and pushed the Lady Hokies to another 20 points.  When the Hokies pulled away and rallied behind the crowd to take a 24-21 lead, UVA took a timeout, and regained some momentum. 

With the score tied at 24, it seemed the Hokies were on their way to dropping the first set of the match.  However, with support from the big three (Willoughby, Parrish, Betsy Horowitz) came up big and sealed the deal with a 26-24 win over their rivals.

Notable players were Kristen Cunningham, Felicia Willoughby, Erin Leaser, Betsy Horowitz, and Taylor Parrish, who all played crucial parts in all four out-of-conference tournaments. The team posted a season-best start of 9-2.  This was their best start since 1998.

"We've been working all preseason, and it was very exciting to beat them the way we did," Horowitz said. "I expected a little closer match, because we normally win here and struggle there."

Coach Chris Riley was thoroughly impressed with his win over UVA.

"We were ready...there are no words that need to be said when talking about playing UVA.  I think we feel pretty confident about they way they've been playing...We are looking forward to the challenge of playing two top-ranked teams, and will be ready."

Tech will indeed have its hands full both Friday and Saturday night, playing two more ACC rivals in Clemson and Georgia Tech, respectively. Leaser is getting better as a setter and assist master, racking up close to 200 assists on the season as a freshman.  With the experience of Willoughby, Parrish, Horowitz, and Cunningham, look for the Hokies to continue their high level of play. Game times are 7 p.m. Friday and 6 p.m. Saturday.

Notables 

VIRGINIA

Kelly Irvin- 11 assists, 5 digs

Sydney Hill- 3 blocks, 1.5 points

Lauren Dickson- 9.0 points, 2 kills, 2 blocks, 9 digs

Marlow Bruneau

VIRGINIA TECH

Taylor Parrish- 12.5 points, 3 digs, 1 block

Justine Record- 12.5 points, 9 digs, 3 blocks

Felicia Willoughby- 11.5 points, 9 blocks, 1 assist

Erin Leaser- 37 assists