Virginia Volleyball Drops Home Finale to Wake Forest

The Cavaliers were swept by the Demon Deacons in the final home match of the season

Matt Riley/Virginia Athletics

In the final home match of the season, the Virginia volleyball team was swept by Wake Forest 25-21, 25-23, 27-25 on Sunday afternoon at Memorial Gymnasium.

Although the Cavaliers lost in straight sets, this was a highly-competitive match and a frustrating one for those who watched it unfold live. Virginia led by as many as three points in every set, but could not sustain that momentum to win any of the three sets. 

The first set was truly one dominated by runs. UVA started strong, winning the first three points and racing out to a 7-4 lead. Wake Forest responded and overtook the Cavaliers to build a 17-14 advantage. UVA answered right back, going on a 7-1 run to take a 21-18 lead, within striking distance of taking the opening set. But, the Demon Deacons had one final run in them, scoring seven-straight points to steal the first set, a crushing blow to UVA's morale right out of the gate. 

Virginia again started strong in the second set, leading by as many as four points on multiple occasions at 6-2 and 10-6. This time, Wake Forest gradually worked back into the set and eventually overtook UVA for good. The Cavaliers rallied to tie the set at 20-20, 21-21, and 22-22, but Wake went on to clinch the set. 

The third set was probably the most painful for the Wahoos, who held a 13-8 lead, but allowed the Deacs to come back and tie the score at 15-15. This one really went down to the wire, with the score getting knotted at 20, 21, 23, 24, and 25, before Wake finally put Virginia away on an ace. 

Abby Tadder led the Cavaliers with 14 kills and a hitting percentage of .346, while Grace Turner had 11 kills, four digs, and four blocks in her final match at Memorial Gymnasium. Gabby Easton registered 35 assists and five blocks and Veresia Yon had six blocks to lead Virginia in that category. Brooklyn Borum had 11 digs and Heyli Velasquez had 12 digs. 

The UVA volleyball team has made some significant strides in year 2 under Shannon Wells, but the inability to play complete sets continues to be one of the most glaring vulnerabilities of the team. 

Now 12-15 overall and 4-12 in the ACC, Virginia will wrap up the season with a pair of ACC road matches at NC State on Wednesday at 3pm and at North Carolina on Saturday at 1pm. 

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