Nov. 14, 2009

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BLACKSBURG, Va. - Wake Forest junior setter Kelsey Jones recorded her fourth-straight double-double but it wasn't enough as Virginia Tech took the momentum in the second set and never looked back in a 3-1 victory Saturday evening in Cassell Coliseum.

The Hokies improve to 18-10 on the year and 8-9 in the conference as Wake falls to 9-19 and 7-10 in the ACC.

Three Hokies recorded double-digit kills led by Justine Record's match-high 15. Record also recorded nine digs and had one service ace in the match. Felecia Willoughby notched five blocks to go along with 13 kills while Cara Baarendse chipped-in with 12 kills. Setter Erin Leaser dished out 52 assists and collected seven digs for Tech.

Jones led the Deacons for a fourth-straight match with 42 assists and 11 digs. Sophomore Carlin Salmon had a great match for Wake, posting 13 kills with a solid .565 hitting percentage on no errors while also blocking five attacks. Junior outside hitter Kristen White finished the match with a team-best 14 kills and six digs.

Junior Lauren McIntyre, sophomore Kadija Fornah and freshman Andrea Beck all recorded six kills on the night for Wake while Megan Thornberry led the team with 17 digs and Abby Miller chipped-in with 13.

Tech finished the match with a solid .284 hitting percentage with 62 kills while the Deacs managed just 51 kills and hit .197. Each team finished with eight blocks as Wake held the edge in digs 60-56 but the hosts had six service aces compared to just one for the Deacons.

With the score tied at 6-6 in the first set, a kill from McIntyre sparked a 5-2 Deacon-run that gave them an early 11-8 lead. McIntyre also teamed-up with Salmon for a block while White added a solo block of her own in the spurt. VT then responded with their own 3-0 run to even the score at 11-11.

The teams would then trade sideouts back and forth for the rest of the set. A kill from White made the score 23-22 in favor of Wake and a block from White and Salmon gave the Deacs set-point at 24-22. White then finished-off the set with her fifth kill of the opening set. Wake hit a solid .244 in the set with 15 kills while Thornberry collected seven digs.

Wake kept the momentum at the start of the second set as kills from Salmon and a service ace from White helped the Deacs build an early 4-1 lead. Tech evened the score at 7-7 but a block from Beck and a kill from McIntyre spurred Wake on a 3-0 but once again, VT responded to tie the score at 11-11.

The teams then traded blows back and forth until a kill from Baarendse and a block assist from Willoughby and Parrish gave Tech an 18-16 edge and forced the Deacons to take time. The run continued out of the break as another block from Willoughby was followed by kills from Willoughby and Parrish to force a second Wake Forest timeout trailing 21-16.

In all, Virginia Tech finished the set on 9-1 run to even the score at 1-1. Baarendse and Parrish each had four kills in the set as the Hokies hit a solid .297 with 16 kills.

Tech rolled the momentum into the third set as the Hokies took an early 7-3 lead, forcing Wake to call time. VT built as much as a much as a seven-point lead at 11-4 but a kill from Salmon along with a block from Salmon and White helped cut the lead back to four at 13-9.

Back-to-back kills from White and Jones trimmed the lead to 13-11 but two kills from Record pushed the lead back to four at 17-13. The lead stayed at four until a block from Willoughby and Parrish forced Wake to burn its second timeout trailing 21-16. Tech would ride that five-point advantage to a 25-19 victory.

Virginia Tech hit .233 in the set as White and Salmon each had three kills in the frame for the Deacs.

Neither team could take more than a one-point lead early on in the fourth set but with the score tied at 8-8, a kill from Record sparked a 7-2 Hokie run to give the hosts a commanding 15-9 lead. Tech would keep the Deacs at arms length the rest of the way and would close out the match with a 25-18 victory.

Wake will return home next weekend for its final two home matches of the year. On Friday night, the Deacons will entertain NC State at 7 pm and then will celebrate senior night in a 6 pm match on Saturday against North Carolina.