After losing to ACC perennial powerhouse Duke two weekends ago at home, the Virginia volleyball team has another chance to upset the No. 21 team in the nation this Friday in Durham, North Carolina. To accomplish its goal, the team will have to play a complete game, which they have yet to do so far against top teams in the ACC.
In the first matchup between the two teams, the Cavaliers (11-8, 4-2 ACC) were able to stay in the match during the first set, losing the set by just two points, but Duke (14-3, 6-0 ACC) dominated the rest of the match to sweep the Cavaliers 25-23, 25-18, 25-18.
“That whole first game, that we lost 25-23, we were physical at the net with them, and we’re banging the ball with them,” coach Dennis Hohenshelt said. “We have to stay in that mentality, and we can’t get cautious. We have to do it for an hour and half, an hour and forty-five minutes, two hours, whatever it takes. The players watch themselves play that first game against Duke and go ‘Why can’t we do that for three games?’ and you go ‘Exactly.’ That’s the point we’re trying to make with them.”
The Cavaliers have gone 2-1 since the game, their only loss against No. 11 North Carolina last weekend. Once again, the Cavaliers played well in the first set but could not hold it together for the entire match against a top-tier opponent.
“Friday against Carolina, we played pretty well the first game,” Hohenshelt said. “We played really hard and challenged them point for point. They just summed up too big of a lead, and we could never catch them. I’m not real disappointed with how they played, but we just have to be better in longer stretches.”
The Cavaliers bounced back from the Duke and UNC losses by beating Louisville and Virginia Tech, respectively. They were able to play a complete game against Virginia Tech this past weekend after being down two sets to win their first five-set match of the season.
“Sunday against Virginia Tech, we were really bad the first game,” Hohenshelt said. “The second game, we competed a little bit, but it ended up being pretty bad the last third of the game, and all I did was challenge them to battle a little bit and make Virginia Tech work a little bit. If we could do those things, maybe something would happen, and basically, that’s all we did.”
Prior to the Duke game, the Cavaliers recorded their best hitting percentage (.383) of the season against Wake Forest. The Cavaliers have only hit .182, .286, .198, and .173 in the four games since. Yet, the Cavaliers are still in the top five in the ACC in many offensive categories, including hitting percentage, assists and kills.
But the Cavaliers are struggling on the defensive side. They are currently in the bottom half of the conference in opponent hitting percentage and blocks. Virginia is also last in the league in digs per game, only digging an average of 12.3 digs per set.
Digging proved particularly problematic in the Cavaliers' first meeting with Duke. In the match, the Cavaliers were out-dug 55 to 31. This was not an anomaly for Duke though, as it currently leads the conference in this category. The Blue Devils also lead the ACC in kills, assists and hitting percentage.
Since beating Virginia, Duke has continued its nine-game winning streak with a victory against Notre Dame the same weekend. The talented squad also secured two more wins this past weekend against Boston College and Wake Forest, placing them second in the league.
Junior outside hitter Emily Sklar, reigning ACC player of the year, has continued her excellent play for the Blue Devils by leading the team in kills the past three games.
Senior outside hitter Jeme Obeime led the Blue Devils in kills in the first game against Virginia and has also continued her excellent play right behind Sklar. The duo have hit double digit kills in all three matches since last playing Virginia and they are currently in the top 10 in kills in the conference.
Obeime and Sklar are joined in the top individual statistics rankings by teammates senior setter Kelsey Williams (11.41 assists per set) and sophomore libero Sasha Karelov (5.32 digs per set).
For seniors on the Virginia team, the rematch will be their last opportunity to get a win against Duke. The Cavaliers have gone through three, four, and five setters in the past four years against the Blue Devils but have not gotten over the hump.
“We really really want that win,” senior defensive specialist Sydney Shelton said. “All our pieces are there, we just really need to execute and take the game to them. We really need to score and make plays — pull out those difficult plays and make a couple of them.”
Tip off is at 6:30 p.m. at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
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