Virginia Volleyball Ends Season With Sweep Over Rival Virginia Tech
The first time Virginia and Virginia Tech squared off this season, the Hokies got off to a hot start, and it took an improbable comeback from the Cavaliers to steal a 3-2 win. This time, Virginia left no doubt, closing out each of the sets and winning 3-0.
Virginia hit 0.333 in set one with only one hitting error, and six hitters recorded multiple kills in the set as setters Regan Trueblood and Ashley Le ran efficient offenses. Virginia led early on in the set after Veresia Yon started with two straight kills. Brooklyn Borum also had two consecutive kills and maintained the slim Cavalier lead at 11-8. Virginia Tech trailed 16-14 before Virginia went on a 9-4 run to close out the set. Virginia had a 4-0 run to lead 23-18 thanks to two Cavalier kills and two Hokie errors, and then two more attack errors gave Virginia the final two points. Playing clean volleyball and forcing the other team to make mistakes allowed the Hoos to take the 1-0 lead.
Abby Tadder had six kills and Virginia had five service aces in set two, but the final score came down to the wire against the Hokies. The two teams remained close throughout the entire set, with a brief boost coming from Milan Gomillion getting two aces in a 4-0 run as Virginia led 9-6. Virginia led 19-15 and then later 22-17 thanks to several errors, but then Virginia Tech orchestrated a comeback thanks to two service aces and a Cavalier attack error. The Hokies tied the score at 23 and prevented one set point from Virginia, but then Abby Tadder got things done for the Hoos with two straight kills, giving Virginia the 26-24 win.
Abby Tadder continued her dominance with six more kills while hitting .750, and Ciera Hecht added five kills in set three. Milan Gomillion had 10 digs alone, and the entire team combined for 30 digs in a set with five ties and three lead changes. Virginia Tech had an 8-0 run early in set three made up of two aces, three kills, and three Virginia errors to lead 13-4. Despite the early deficit, the Cavaliers began chipping away, with a 4-0 run with two Veresia Yon kills making it 15-10, and then a few two point streaks keeping things close at 20-14. From there, the Cavaliers put together an 8-0 run of their own with Kate Johnson at the service line, who served up two aces and also served competitively on her other attempts, allowing Abby Tadder to get three straight kills as Virginia Tech struggled to get good contact on offense. With the run, Virginia trailed by one at 22-21, and then a few points later, the Hoos had match point. Virginia Tech got a kill to fend off match point and then had set point at 25-24, but then an attack error tied up the score again. Ciera Hecht came in clutch at the end, getting two kills and securing the win for her team, 27-25.
Abby Tadder had 15 kills and hit .650, and Ciera Hecht added nine kills. Veresia Yon had six kills and five blocks, Brooklyn Borum had six kills and ten digs, and Milan Gomillion has 18 digs as more highlights for the Cavaliers.
Coach Shannon Wells has to be happy to end with a rivalry matchup victory and the win also extends UVA's lead over Virginia Tech in the 2023-2024 Commonwealth Clash to 5-0. Virginia finishes 11-17 on the season and 4-14 in the ACC.
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