Cavaliers Outlast Hurricanes in Volleyball Thriller, 3-2
Oct. 24, 2008
Charlottesville, Va. – Lane Carico led four players in double-figure kills for the Hurricanes, but it wasn’t enough Friday night as the University of Miami volleyball team dropped a 3-2 decision (25-19, 27-25, 13-25, 22-25, 13-15) in a five-set classic at the University of Virginia inside Memorial Gymnasium at Charlottesville, Virginia.
After winning the first two sets of the match, Miami (19-3, 7-3 ACC) was unable to sustain that same enthusiasm and energy after the 10-minute intermission between the second and third set.
Starting the match hitting a slid .232 clip (35-13-95), the `Canes were limited to just .038 (29-25-104) the rest of the way. Meanwhile, the Cavaliers collected a .155 shot (32-16-103) in the final three sets.
UVA (13-9, 5-5 ACC) rode the strength of three players with 13 kills each showing just how fluidly setters Marlow Bruneau and Kelly Irvin were able to set-up the offensive attack for the Cavaliers.
The `Canes dropped the third set, 25-13, before battling back to tie things up late in the fourth set at 21-all. The Cavaliers got a kill from Shannon Davis and Lauren Dickson down the stretch, but back-to-back UM errors aided the process heavily for the Cavaliers. Miami committed a match-high 11 errors in the fourth set.
In the fifth set, the Hurricanes led 11-9 following an attack error from UVA, and then a timeout requested by the Cavaliers.
Miami held on to a slim 13-11 advantage before three-straight kills from Dickson and Bruneau pushed the home team out in front, 14-13. Another hitting error charged to the `Canes sealed the upset win for the Cavaliers.
The Cavaliers were led by Davis, Dickson and Simone Asque with 13 kills each. Dickson also recorded 19 digs to add a double-double. AJ Cushman led all UVA players in digs with 21.
In the loss, the Hurricanes did have three players collect double-doubles. Freshman Carico had a match-high 20 kills and 27 digs, posting her 11th double-double of the campaign. Her 27 digs was a season-high, and her 20-kill performance was the second time this season that the Manhattan Beach, California native eclipsed the 20-kill plateau.
Also touching double-digits for kills were Ashley Woods with a career second-best 14 kills and three block assists. Angelica Ellis added 11 kills and six blocks (four assists) to help out the UM cause.
Junior Genny Mayhew added her ninth double-double of the year with 10 kills and a season-high 17 digs. Sophomore Katie Gallagher had her eighth double-double of the year with 51 assists and career-high 23 digs.
With her 51 assists tonight, Gallagher also stepped into sole possession of second place all-time in school history for assists. Mayhew’s 17 digs added her name to an elite group of athletes in UM volleyball history as she moved into the “500 Club”, now holding more than 500 kills and 500 digs in a career.
The Hurricanes will look to try and start a new streak tomorrow when they face Virginia Tech on the road in Blacksburg at 6 p.m. The match will be shown live via the internet through ACC Select at www.hurricanesports.com.
