Returning to Memorial Gymnasium after sweeping Duke, Virginia took on No. 25 North Carolina Sunday in its second home game of the weekend. The Cavaliers (15-4, 5-3 ACC) aimed to defend their seven-match home win streak and make a statement against a quality ACC team, but they fell short on both counts. Virginia took the match to the final set, but the Tar Heels (15-2, 7-1 ACC) won 3-2.
Despite the loss, the Cavaliers had an impressive performance that included a 10-point comeback in the fourth set. Senior outside hitter Brooklyn Borum and senior middle blocker Abby Tadder had 12 kills apiece. Defensive specialist Kate Johnson tallied a total of five aces, tying for the fifth-most in a single game in program history.
North Carolina controlled the beginning of the first set, going up 11-4 and then 16-8. Virginia struggled to generate any real offensive momentum, and two timeouts called by Coach Shannon Wells hardly made a difference. The Tar Heels maintained their lead, and though senior libero Milan Gomillon made an impressive diving dig that helped bring the Cavaliers closer, the set ended 25-16.
The second set opened with a flurry of errors which led Virginia to a 4-0 lead. Led by sophomore outside hitter Lauryn Bowie, the Cavaliers continued to pressure North Carolina, who struggled to handle the home team’s energy. The Tar Heels called a pair of timeouts in quick succession as the Cavaliers jumped out to a 12-3 lead.
The North Carolina timeouts successfully cooled a hot Virginia offense, and the Tar Heels managed to score three points in a row. Seeing Virginia’s lead shrink to 14-9, Wells called her first timeout in order to reignite her team’s spark.
The timeout certainly helped. Coming out of the timeout, Borum prompted a 6-2 run, increasing the score to 20-11 and effectively ending the set. Tadder exploited a disorganized Tar Heel defense to bring the set to 24-15, and fans on their feet cheered as they watched senior outside hitter Elayna Duprey end the set 25-16 with a kill.
The third set opened with a Virginia point, but the two teams kept the score close as they traded blows. The set remained neck-and-neck until two North Carolina errors expanded Virginia’s lead, and the Tar Heels, rattled, called a timeout to try and regroup to address the 14-9 score.
Things remained competitive, with Bowie and Tadder tallying kills and Johnson earning another ace. The Cavaliers stretched their lead to 19-13, but then North Carolina went on a 5-1 run after a timeout to make it 20-18 and force a Virginia timeout.
A Cavalier error and a Tar Heel kill tied the game 20-20. North Carolina promptly took the lead, and efforts from Borum, Gomillion and Tadder fell short as the Tar Heels ended the set 22-25.
The Cavaliers had a messy start to the fourth set. Errors and lackluster offense caused Wells, unhappy with the 5-3 score, to call a timeout to focus her team.
The frustrated and disorganized Cavaliers called their second timeout of the set down not long after but continued to struggle with errors as the score reached its largest gap at 20-10. Unshaken, the Cavaliers closed the gap to 21-15 with kills and blocks from Borum and Tadder.
Energized and on their feet during a North Carolina timeout, the crowd anticipated the Cavalier comeback with thunderous applause. Seemingly in response, Borum, Tadder and Dood all made great plays to close the gap to 21-18. North Carolina desperately attempted to subdue the energy coming from the Cavaliers, but Borum scored, Tadder and Dood came up with blocks and North Carolina committed an error, closing the score to 22-21. An out of bounds attack by the Tar Heels tied the set. Finally, a kill from Tadder gave Virginia the lead, and Borum’s ace brought it to match point. The Cavaliers secured the set win 25-22, tying the overall match after coming back from 10 points down.
The Cavaliers have won all of their matches that have come down to the fifth set. They had the momentum, the crowd and the sheer will to win. All it would take was 15 points.
The fifth set remained close, staying tied until two Virginia errors gave North Carolina the lead. Two Tar Heel errors closed the gap once more, tying the set at 9-9. The score remained even at 11-11 thanks to a kill from junior middle blocker Kate Dean.
However, Virginia never scored again. Wells, facing match point, called another timeout, but an attack from Borum fell onto her side of the net, ending the match.
It is always hard losing at home, especially in the fifth set in front of a crowd like the one present Sunday. However, every failure is a moment for learning, and Wells believes that her team took a big lesson from the match. She looks at the fourth set as a statement attesting to what Virginia volleyball is about.
“Both coaches were out of timeouts,” Wells said. “What you saw was two really great teams that had little coaching influence and just going after it. That’s where I'm most proud of this match … Kudos to our team for really stepping up … It was really just a group of women who came together and really just showed off who they want to be in those moments.”
Abby Tadder put what Virginia volleyball is all about in one word — passion.
“We all care so much for each other,” Tadder said. “We care so much for this sport, and so much for this season.”
While the loss may hurt, Virginia leaves the day with a renewed resolve and energy to tap into — a passion and love for the game that will fuel the program in a potential NCAA Tournament run.
The Cavaliers will face Syracuse Wednesday on the road and put this newfound energy to the test. They will look to bounce back from their loss and get another conference win. The match will be available to watch on ACCNX at 7 p.m.
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