Syracuse Hits Speed Bump in Loss to Virginia
By Ryan Croke | @ryancroke_
CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA. | A promising start to conference play for Syracuse volleyball (10-4, 2-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) hit a speed bump on Sunday as SU fell to Virginia (8-6, 1-3 ACC) in five sets.
It was a back-and-forth, tightly contested affair all afternoon long. SU took set one 25-16 convincingly, but every other frame was decided by three points or fewer.
Set three was a 25-22 Hoos victory. Set four went to SU 25-23. UVA grabbed set four 25-22. The fifth and final frame was as back-and-forth as it gets. UVA led 7-1 before SU stormed back to lead 9-8. The Orange held a 13-10 lead before the Cavs came back to win 17-15.
It’s a deflating result for the Orange, who fell to a depleted Cavaliers squad that has been ravaged by injury.
Despite being without three of their top four attackers in kills per set, the Hoos attack found refuge in the presence of 17-year-old outside hitter Reagan Ennist. The freshman tallied 30 kills to set a UVA freshman record. It was the first 30-kill match from a Cavalier in 25 years.
SU outside hitter Gabby McLaughlin set her second season-high of the weekend with 23 kills after 21 against Virginia Tech on Friday. Fellow outside hitter Skylar George added 18 kills of her own and 16 digs in her third double-double of the season.
Syracuse’s attack showed inconsistency throughout the day. The Orange had a hitting percentage above .400 after two sets. That figure would drop to .230 by the conclusion of the match.
SU returns home for its first set of ACC matches in the 315 this upcoming weekend. Syracuse hosts California on Friday at 6 p.m. and No. 4 Stanford on Sunday at 1 p.m.
For coverage of those matches and the remainder of the Syracuse volleyball season, follow @ryancroke_ and @CitrusTVSports on Twitter/X.
