Yesterday, the shovels came out of the closet. Though it has not snowed in Charlottesville yet, these giant pads on sticks are used to teach volleyball players to hit around a block, something the Cavaliers will have to do plenty of Friday night when they travel to College Park to face the best team in the ACC.
The Maryland Terrapins aren't just tall -- they are monstrous. With blockers standing 6-foot-5 and 6-foot-4, holding a shovel aloft in practice seems like a pretty good strategy for the Cavaliers. Even Maryland's shortest blocker, 6-foot-2 senior Stephanie Smith, has two inches on Virginia middle Shannon Davis.
"Maryland is huge," assistant coach Matt Ginipro said. "Without a doubt, they're the best blocking team in the conference. We're just working on making smart shots because we're not as big. In practice, we put up the shovels and work on hitting around and off of them.
Virginia's strategy seems to revolve around keeping possession of the ball as long as possible.
"If we can get some really good serving, we can get at their ball control," junior outside hitter Emily Perilli said.
The Cavaliers do have momentum on their side as they board the bus heading north. Against Virginia Tech, Virginia pulled out a decisive 3-1 victory on the road Tuesday, its second trouncing of the Hokies this season. As may be the case in College Park, the team overcame a difficult setting to pull out the win.
"It was kind of hard dealing with the big airs in Tech's gym," Perilli said. "The ball floats, so it's hard to keep control. It feels great to sweep both games against Tech, though, especially after the losses to UNC and Georgia Tech that went five games. It's good to boost our spirits heading into this weekend's matches."
The Cavaliers (15-8 overall, 10-4 ACC) recognize that a win against Maryland could be what they need to make a serious run at the ACC title. Last time the two teams met, the Terps sent Virginia packing in a touch 3-2 match in Charlottesville.
This time, the Cavaliers will need production from their ACC-leading ace duo of Sarah and Emily Kirkwood to keep the ball out of the hands of the Terps and away from the giants in the frontcourt.
"We had some trouble serving against Tech, so if we can do well on Friday, that should help," Perilli said.
Although Maryland is foremost in their minds, dealing with the Terps is just the start of the Cavaliers' weekend road trip that will cover 550 miles over two days. After College Park, Virginia packs up once again and heads to Chestnut Hill, Mass. for another ACC match against Boston College.
If things go according to plan, this second match in two days should be nowhere near as daunting as the first. In their last meeting, the Cavaliers put down the Golden Eagles 3-0.
Still, facing Maryland's twin (or triple) towers across the net should be enough of a challenge to last Virginia for quite a while -- except this time, it won't be just a pad on a stick.
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