CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — No. 11 Georgia Tech volleyball (14-2, 5-1 ACC) returned to its winning ways by staving off Virginia (8-8, 1-5 ACC) in five sets (25-11, 21-25, 25-21, 22-25, 15-13) on Sunday at Memorial Gymnasium. The Yellow Jackets earned the 3-2 triumph after starting the match with their highest set margin of victory of the season in the first set, 25-11.
Senior outside hitter Tamara Otene put in yet another spectacular performance as she became the 13th Yellow Jacket in program history to join the 20/20 double double club with 20 kills and a career-high 20 digs, hitting at a .349 clip while adding three aces. The New Zealand native earned her ninth double double of the season as she spearheaded the White and Gold in both phases.
Junior outside hitter Bianca Bertolino joined her with a well-rounded performance of her own, adding 14 kills and 14 digs on top of four blocks for her fifth double double on the year. Freshman right side hitter Larissa Mendes completed the three-headed brace on both ends, pitching in 17 kills and six digs while tying Bertolino for the team lead with four blocks.
Efficient attackers with career days of their own included junior middle blockers DeAndra Pierce and Kali Engeman, who both hit above .500 as Pierce turned in a personal-best 10 kills at a .500 clip while Engeman earned her first collegiate kill, going on to finish with five kills on a team-best .625 hitting percentage.
The offense was primarily run through freshman setter Heloise Soares with a career-high 45 assists. Senior libero Paola Pimentel cleaned up the back end defensively with a team-high 22 digs for her seventh 20+ dig match of the season.
The Yellow Jackets held advantages on paper in most major categories as a unit, leading the way in kills (72-57), hitting percentage (.271-.192), assists (66-52) and digs (82-69).
How it Happened
Georgia Tech took over early in set one as Otene fueled a four-point run with a kill and an ace to push the Yellow Jackets in front, 8-3. Another burst of three with a pair of kills from the recently subbed graduate middle blocker Afedo Manyang increased the advantage to 11-4, and the White and Gold continued to roll with another stretch of five for an 18-7 lead. Tech would take another four straight to put the set out of reach at 23-9, closing out the first set soon after, 25-11.
Virginia turned things around in set two as it remained competitive throughout. An early run of three by the Yellow Jackets for a 5-4 lead would…
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