NORFOLK, Va. – The Virginia volleyball team (3-0) closed its opening weekend with two victories on Saturday (Aug. 31) at Old Dominion’s Quest for the Crown tournament at the ODU Volleyball Center.
Virginia defeated William & Mary 3-0 (25-15, 25-20, 25-14) in an afternoon match before topping host school Old Dominion 3-0 (26-24, 26-24, 25-19) that evening.
Seniors Elayna Duprey and Milan Gomillion were named co-MVPs of the tournament. Abby Tadder was named to the All-Tournament team.
Duprey logged a career-high 20 kills against Old Dominion, which ranks fifth all-time for a Cavalier in a three-set match and is the most kills in a three-setter for a Hoo since 2013.
In the contest with William and Mary, freshman setter Zoey Dood hit .800 for the match, with eight kills on ten attacks, 13 assists, five digs, two aces and three blocks. Freshman hitter Becca Wight led the team with 11 kills. She also had two blocks and two digs.
Against the Tribe, the Cavaliers never trailed in the first two sets, jumping out to a 2-0 lead. William and Mary took an early 4-2 lead in the third set before UVA mounted a 9-0 run to take control and hold on for a 25-14 victory.
Virginia’s defense held the Tribe to a .033 hitting percentage for the match after they totaled 22 kills and 19 attack errors, eight of which came off the hands of UVA blockers.
The match against Old Dominion was much closer, with the Cavaliers edging ODU 26-24 in each of the first two sets. In the third set, the Monarchs jumped out to an early 6-1 lead, but the Cavaliers tied up the match at 9-9 and went on to win it 25-19.
Virginia had 49 kills and eight blocks against ODU.
HOW IT HAPPENED – WILLIAM & MARY
Set 1: Virginia 25, William & Mary 15
With the score at 3-2, Virginia opened up a 9-1 run to take control of the first set. The Cavaliers started the match hitting .778, with seven kills on their first nine attacks. They finished the frame with 14 kills, hitting .407, landing five of their eight aces in the match in the first set. Abby Tadder went 4-for-4 on kills while also contributing one of the aces.
Set 2: Virginia 25, William & Mary 20
The set was close early, with UVA pulling out to leads four times only to have the Tribe tie it back up despite hitting just .095. At 10-10, a block by Kate Dean and Duprey put UVA back in the lead. Duprey followed with an ace to swing the momentum and make it 12-10. The Cavaliers pulled ahead 17-13, but the Tribe pulled back within two at 18-16…