Volleyball split its weekend in the state of Virginia by defeating Virginia 3-1 and dropping its match to Virginia Tech, 2-3. The Pack improved its record to 20-12. It is the first time State has had a 20-win season since 1996.
In its first match against the Cavaliers, the Pack won its first, third and final sets of the match 25-18, 25-15 and 25-23. State dropped its second set 20-25.
Senior Margaret Salata led the team in kills with 16. Senior Luciana Shafer followed Salata’s total with 12. Junior Megan Cyr led the Pack in assists with 47 for the match.
According to Head Coach Bryan Bunn , Salata has come a long way in her development all year.
“She’s just been fantastic this year,” Bunn said. “We’ve always been able to count on her to get a kill when we needed it. She’s come a long way since that night she got kicked out the gym. She’s worked hard to become a very different player.”
Senior Kelly Wood led the team on the defensive end with 23 digs and freshman Alston Kearns finished with 16.
According Bunn , the Pack competed very well in its match.
“We fought hard the first game against UVA ,” Bunn said. “We came out and we were really ready to go. We competed in the three sets, they jumped out on us, and then we rebounded. They played well again but we fought through the fourth. Everybody played pretty solid.”
Its second match with the Hokies was a comeback win for Virginia Tech. The Pack won its first two sets 25-22 and 26-24. From that point on State could not take a match and dropped its final three sets of the match 21-25, 24-26, and 11-15. The match proved to be a battle between the two squads with 17 ties and 9 lead changes in the fourth set.
“At the UVA game I think we came out very connected,” Salata said. “We were ready to play in both matches, obviously in the Virginia Tech match we were struggling but we pulled out the first two sets.
“We were playing better and a lot more connected as a team in the Virginia match and at Virginia Tech we were playing as a bunch of individuals.”
Freshman Dariyan Hopper led the Pack in kills with 19.
Bunn believed that his team wasn’t completely focused in its second match.
“We just weren’t locked in against Virginia Tech,” Bunn said. “We started of ok, they weren’t playing well and we didn’t take advantage of that.”
According to Wood, she believes that State did not play to its expectations.
“I don’t think Virginia Tech is better than UVA , but also we played more cohesive as a team against UVA versus that Virginia Tech game,” Wood said. “We talked about playing more as individuals. That was one of the main differences.”
The Pack will end its season by hosting its Senior Night against UNC-Chapel Hill Wednesday in Raleigh.
“I’m extremely excited to end the season with Carolina,” Salata said. “We beat them my sophomore year at the end of the season and so I’m hoping to relive that again, especially with it being my last match.”
