Orange Outlasts Hokies in Five-Set Victory

Sunday, October 11

Syracuse, NY

1:00 PM

Syracuse University

13-4

Virginia Tech

12-6

Virginia Tech

Syracuse

10/11/2015 6:37:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The Syracuse volleyball team captured its fourth ACC win of the season, defeating Virginia Tech in a five-set battle on Sunday at the Women's Building. With the win, the Orange are now 13-4 overall and 4-2 in conference play.

The Orange came out strong in the first set, defeating the Hokies 25-20. Virginia Tech, however, didn't stay down for long, as they came out on top in the next two sets, 25-18 and 25-17. Syracuse battled back to win the fourth set, 25-18, forcing a fifth set. The Orange kept the momentum going in the final set, cruising to a 15-7 victory to take the match 3-2. With the win, Syracuse is 3-0 on the season in matches played to five sets.

Senior Nicolette Serratore recorded her seventh double-double of the season, leading the Orange with 16 kills on the afternoon while adding 10 digs. Senior Gosia Wlaszczuk paved the way for the Orange attackers, posting 42 assists and racking up 13 digs of her own, resulting in her eighth double-double of the season.

Senior Monika Salkute and sophomore Leah Levert led the Orange defense at the net, tallying six and five total blocks, respectively. Salkute also had a major presence at the net offensively, racking up 13 kills over the course of five sets. Sophomore libero Belle Sand led the Syracuse defense from the back row, totaling 15 digs in the win.

The two teams began the contest exchanging points before Virginia Tech jumped out to a 9-5 lead. A service error by the Hokies and back-to-back kills from Wlaszczuk and freshman Mariia Levanova brought the Orange within one at the 9-8 mark. Syracuse and Virginia Tech proceeded to trade points, and a service ace by Jalissa Trotter knotted the game up at 16, forcing a Virginia Tech timeout. Two unforced Hokie errors and a kill by Salkute put the Orange up 20-17, resulting in another timeout by Virginia Tech. The timeouts couldn't halt the Syracuse momentum, as the Orange went on to win the opening set 25-20.

The Hokies started off the second set strong, building an 11-4 advantage over the Orange. Syracuse bounced back, however, going on a 9-3 run to bring the Orange within one point at the 14-13 mark. Heading into the final points of the set, a few unforced errors on Syracuse's end and a kill by Virginia Tech put the Hokies up 23-16. A kill by freshman Santita Ebangwese brought the Orange within six at the 24-18 mark, but the Hokies immediately answered with a kill of their own, capping the second set victory for Virginia Tech, 25-18.

The two teams started off the third set trading points with each other, before tying it up at the nine-point mark. Virginia Tech began to build the momentum, going on an 8-2 run to put them up 17-11. A kill by Silvi Uattara brought Syracuse within four at the 20-16 mark, forcing a Virginia Tech timeout. A kill and a service ace by the Hokies extended the Virginia Tech lead by six, 22-16. Another kill by the Hokies and a block by Lindsey Owens sealed a Virginia Tech victory in the third, 25-17.

With the Hokies up two sets to one over the Orange, the two teams continued to battle back and forth at the start of the fourth set. A kill by Serratore knotted the score up at nine, with neither team being able to shake the other. Continuing to tie the set up almost every other point, back-to-back service errors from both sides of the court evened out the score one last time at the 17-point mark. Four attack errors by Virginia Tech and a kill by Salkute put Syracuse up 22-18. A major block by Salkute and Levert and two more unforced Hokie errors lifted Syracuse past Virginia Tech, 25-18, forcing a fifth set.

Syracuse continued to build momentum into the final set, starting off with a 5-2 lead. A kill by Virginia Tech brought the Hokies within two at the 7-5 mark, but a service error committed by Virginia Tech and a service ace by Wlaszczuk extended the Syracuse lead 9-5, resulting in a Hokie timeout. Consecutive kills by Serratore and Wlaszczuk stretched the Syracuse lead 11-6, and the Orange never looked back. A final kill by Salkute sealed the ACC victory for the Orange, 15-7.

Syracuse faces Boston College for the second time this season this Wednesday, Oct. 14 at 7 p.m. in Chestnut Hill, Mass. The Orange then return home next Sunday, taking on Virginia at 1 p.m. in the Women's Building.

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