Hokie ClubCHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - Playing in their final match as Hokies, seniors Amanda McKinzie and Lindsey Owens led the Virginia Tech volleyball team with 17 and 16 kills, respectively, in a thrilling 3-2 win (25-22, 25-23, 17-25, 21-25, 15-13) over Virginia to sweep the season series with its in-state rival.
Tech (13-18, 8-12 ACC) saw McKinzie go over 1,000 kills for her career in the win against the ‘Hoos (7-24, 4-15 ACC), making her only the seventh player in program history to collect 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs in a career. Freshman libero Carol Raffety finished with 14 digs to give her 481 on the season, a new record for digs in a season by a Tech freshman.
The Hokies hit .344 in the first set and created separation with a 3-0 run at 16-16 that gave Tech a 19-16 lead, forcing the ‘Hoos to call a timeout. The Hokies’ lead would not be given up again as Tech took an early 1-0 lead in the match with a 25-22 first set victory.
In the second game, UVA pulled ahead late to take a 23-22 lead but they wouldn’t score again for the remainder of the set. Three-straight kills, two from Owens and one from McKinzie, clinched the second for the Hokies, 25-23, to take a 2-0 lead heading into the break.
The Cavaliers hit .353 and .344 in the third and fourth sets that helped them tie the match up at 2-2 and force a deciding fifth game.
The senior outsides stepped up once again in the fifth as back-to-back kills gave the Hokies a two-point cushion, 3-1, that proved to be critical. Tech would lead wire-to-wire in the fifth despite the ‘Hoos tying the score five times. UVA also wouldn’t go down quietly as they faced set point at 14-11 before rattling off consecutive points to draw within one, 14-13, forcing Tech to call a timeout. Out of the timeout, a back set from sophomore Rhegan Mitchell to Jaila Tolbert clinched the match for the Hokies.
MATCH NOTES
- Tech has now won its last three meetings and three of thei last four against UVA.
- Tech finished the season strong for the second-consecutive year as they took five of their last seven to conclude 2016.
- McKinzie tallied her 1,000th kill on the Hokies 10th point of the second set. She finishes with 1,011 career kills and 1,168 digs.
- Owens finishes her career as a Hokie ranked fourth all-time with 1,514 kills and sixth in program history in digs with 1,514.
- Owens matched her career-high of four solo blocks that she first recorded against Duke as a freshman on Sept. 28, 2013.
- Both McKinzie and Owens finished with double-doubles in their final match.
- Raffety broke Amanda Cloyd’s record of 478 digs by a freshman that was set back in 2004.
- Sophomore Jaila Tolbert tied for the team-lead in blocks with four to go along with a .438 hitting percentage and 8 kills.
- Junior Rhana Mitchell picked up her first career start and it was also her first start alongside twin sister Rhegan Mitchell.