PETERSBURG, Va. – UVa-Wise volleyball opened the season Friday afternoon in Petersburg, Virginia as they played a double-header on day one of the Virginia State University Tournament. The Cavs dropped three sets to Union University (22-25, 14-25, 19-25) and fell in straight sets against Seton Hill (21-25, 15-25, 14-25) on the first day of the tournament. UVa-Wise lost the first match of day two to Alderson Broaddus, 3-0 (17-25, 21-25, 8-25), before the team claimed their first win of the season against Virginia State University by a score of 3-1 (18-25, 25-23, 25-14, 25-19).
In Friday's first match of the day against Union, the Cavaliers recorded just nine kills in the first set to Union's 12 kills. The Cavs fell behind early with a 7-8 score, but would remain within striking distance for the entirety of the match before they dropped the set 22-25. The Lady Bulldogs dominated with an early 3-8 lead in the second set and the Cavs were not able to gain control and fell 14-25. UVa-Wise started the third match toggling the lead with Union and only down 6-8 early in the set. Union steadily gained a margin and after four unanswered points the Lady Bulldogs ended the match with a 19-25 set win.
The Cavs entered the second match of the day with an early 8-3 lead against Seton Hill. UVa-Wise maintained the lead for the majority of the set before Union tied up the score 16-16. The Cavs were only able to notch four additional points before the Griffins clinched a 21-25 set win. After a 4-4 tie early in the second set, the Cavaliers could not regain momentum as they fell behind 8-16 before Seton Hill took the set by a score of 15-25. The Cavs ended day one after a 14-25 defeat in the final set against the Griffins. Sophomore Morgan Milligan led the Cavs with 11 assists in the match while freshman Makayla Ledford tallied 10 of her own.
In the second day of the tournament, the Cavs faced Alderson Broaddus and Virginia State University in another double-header. UVa-Wise was defeated in straight sets by Alderson Broaddus (17-25, 21-25, 8-25) in the first game of the day. The Cavs rebounded from their three straight losses to win their first match of the season against Virginia State University by a score of 3-1 (18-25, 25-23, 25-14, 25-19).
UVa-Wise opened the first match of the day falling behind 3-9 early in the first set. The Battlers finished on a 5-0 run and won by a score of 17-25. The Cavs made an energetic comeback in the second set after an early 4-8 deficit and were able to get within two at 21-23. Alderson Broaddus won the last two points and claimed the set 21-25. UVa-Wise logged 14 kills in the set and a .286 attack percentage. The Cavs were held to just eight points as the Battlers won the final set of the game. Freshman Savannah Turner led UVa-Wise with eight kills alongside junior Ciara Kain who recorded seven kills and eight digs.
The final match of the tournament proved victorious for the Cavs as they walked away with a 3-1 win over host institution, Virginia State University. After falling in the first set 18-25, UVa-Wise pushed through to win the last three sets, 25-23, 25-14, 25-19. The Cavs registered 42 kills in the match compared to 32 kills for the Trojans. Junior Ciara Kain led UVa-Wise in kills with 12, while freshman Brooke Abbott added seven kills for the team. Virginia State University recorded 29 assists in the game while UVa-Wise logged 38, led by sophomore Morgan Milligan who had 27 total assists in the match.
UVa-Wise Volleyball returns to Wise for their home opener against Milligan College on Tuesday, September 5 at 6:30 p.m.
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