Virginia went back on the road this weekend to take part in the Liberty Tournament Thursday and Friday. The Cavaliers (8-1, 0-0 ACC) showed that this will be a definitive season by downing all three opponents — ETSU 3-1 Thursday evening, West Virginia 3-1 Friday afternoon and Liberty 3-2 Friday night. Now, with a multitude of victories under its belt, Virginia is ready to enter into regular season matchups with the same fiery energy it has shown so far this season.
Game 1 — Virginia 3, ETSU 1 (25-22, 15-25, 25-13, 25-18)
Arriving at the Liberty Arena Thursday afternoon, the Cavaliers were ready to continue the momentum they had built over the two tournaments so far this season — collecting five wins and only one loss. Facing the Buccaneers (5-4, 0-0 SoCon) first, Virginia was ready to open play and be on the offensive.
The Cavaliers started off strong and took the lead, but ETSU always stayed close behind. Eventually, Virginia managed to pull ahead by five points, making the score 17-12, but the Buccaneers retaliated with a six-point run that gave them the lead. Senior outside hitter Brooklyn Borum took their initiative as an opportunity to attack though and came out with four kills that propelled the Cavaliers to a first set victory.
In the second set, ETSU was warmed up and hit the ground running. The Buccaneers took the first five points and forced the Cavaliers to play a game of catch-up. They initially managed to close the gap to four points when the score was 7-3, but ETSU would not let go and went on to win the second set 25-15.
Frustrated by the set loss, Virginia channeled its anger into the goal of winning the third set with newfound strength. Three service aces from junior outside hitter Kadynce Boothe set the tone for the third set and put the Cavaliers ahead 4-0.
Senior libero Milan Gomillion consistently kept the ball in play with 12 digs and had 2 service aces of her own, largely contributing to the lead Virginia was able to hold in place. The Cavaliers took the third set 25-13 after an ace by Borum, making the overall score 2-1.
Going into the fourth set, Virginia knew it needed just one more set win to take the match victory. The Buccaneers initially took a slight lead with a score of 10-8. However, the Cavaliers fought with a power that couldn’t be matched — scoring seven points uncontested. With no service errors and five kills from Boothe, Virginia took the fourth set and the match 25-18.
Game 2 — Virginia 3, West Virginia 1 (29-31, 25-16, 25-21, 25-19)
The Cavaliers returned Friday ready for two back-to-back matches — just like they had had at the two other tournaments this year — with their first matchup against the Mountaineers (3-5, 0-0 Big 12).
Neither team got ahead in the first set and tied up to 7-7, until West Virginia went on a five-point run to take a solid lead. It continued to pull ahead 21-15 and hoped to easily grab the first set victory, but Virginia would not let go. The Cavaliers fought their way back to tie the score 24-24, forcing back-and-forth set points.
The Mountaineers managed to just edge out Virginia for a first set 31-29 win, giving everyone a chance to recuperate and understand the grit that would be needed to win this match. The Cavaliers knew to hit the second set hard from the get-go and did exactly that — scoring the first six points of the set.
Senior striker Ashley Le was a key player in the second set, recording six digs and an ace in the six rotations she was on the floor for. Le’s outstanding performance helped lead Virginia to its 25-16 win in the second set.
The third set went very similarly to the first, with neither team grasping a strong lead. It wasn’t until the score was tied 17-17 that the Cavaliers managed to make a move and overcome West Virginia. They outscored the Mountaineers 8-4 and took the third set 25-21.
Virginia and West Virginia were close in the fourth set until the Cavaliers managed to grasp onto a two-point lead. The gap managed to grow to five points when the score was 18-13 and was enough of a push to secure the fourth set 25-19 for Virginia — largely defined by its 15 kills.
With their second tournament win under their belt, the team rested up before facing their last opponent of the weekend.
Game 3 — Virginia 3, Liberty 2 (16-25, 25-19, 22-25, 25-23, 15-9)
Virginia faced off against the host of the tournament, Liberty (4-4, 0-0 CUSA), Friday night.
The first set started slow, both teams taking turns scoring a point and then tying the set back up. It was not until the score was 10-10 that the Flames were able to make a move that would put them ahead — dominating the second half of the first set 13-4 to take the victory 25-16. Virginia also was showing signs of fatigue, recording seven attack errors that contributed to Liberty’s first-set win.
However, the Cavaliers did not let the first set define the rest of the game. Senior middle blocker Abby Tadder stepped up and executed six kills, contributing to the 19 sets that were perfectly carried out. Paired with no service errors, Virginia was unstoppable and pushed towards a 25-19 victory that tied the overall match 1-1.
The Flames were proving to be the Cavaliers’ most difficult opponent of the weekend though when they responded with their own offensive streak in the third set. While the set was mostly tied until 19-19, Liberty managed to strike when it was most crucial and outscored Virginia 6-3 to take the third set 25-22.
In the fourth set, the Cavaliers knew they could not back down — one more set win for the Flames would give them the match. Liberty would take the lead throughout the set, but Virginia never let them get too far ahead — refusing for the Flames to take the set point even when the score was tied 23-23. The Cavaliers forced a fifth set by clinching the fourth 25-23, leading to a final showdown between the two teams.
Virginia had a second wave of strength in the fifth set that pushed them to fight for a tournament sweep. The Cavaliers shut out Liberty — allowing the Flames to only have four kills paired with four attack errors. The strong offense led Virginia to a 15-9 fifth set victory that clinched the match for the Cavaliers. Coach Shannon Wells was extremely proud of the resilience and skill displayed by her players.
“I’m really proud of this team,” Wells said. “We have focused on getting one percent better, which means competing against our last opportunity and that’s what’s happening. We fully believe the results will take care of themselves when we focus on our side and find ways to get better with each repetition. Kudos to our seniors who had some big matches throughout this tournament. This is a big team win, and it’s encouraging to know we still have so much to get better at.”
Virginia now continues its season bolstered by an 8-1 start, a record that has not happened since 2004. Looking forward, the Cavaliers will be ready to host Middle Tennessee State in back-to-back matchups Tuesday and Wednesday at Memorial Gymnasium. Attending regular season home games are free to the public.
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