TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – In a back-and-forth affair that saw 15 ties and five lead changes, the Virginia Tech volleyball team was defeated by Florida State 3-0 on Sunday afternoon inside Tully Gym.
The Hokies (13-11, 4-8 ACC) were led by outside hitter Kaity Smith and right-side hitter Jaila Tolbert, with both turning in double-digit kills. Outside hitter Payton Caffrey paced the Seminoles (14-8, 10-2 ACC), racking up a match-high 14 kills on a .444 hitting percentage with two blocks.
Trailing by as many as eight points to begin the match at 10-2, the Hokies dug deep and cut the deficit in half after a kill by Smith to make it 12-8. Florida State responded, though, getting to a 20-13 lead. But Tech got hot and went on a 5-1 run to cut it to a three-point set at 21-18. However, the 'Noles scored four of the next six points to win it, 25-20.
Freshman Angel Robinson put down a kill to give the Hokies a 7-4 advantage to begin the second set. But Florida State rallied back and tied it at 9-all and then some, going on a 9-2 run to cause a Tech timeout at 18-11. Out of the break, Robinson got another kill but the remaining points would seesaw as the 'Noles scored seven and the Hokies racked up six for a final of 25-17.
Opening up with an 8-5 lead following a kill by senior Jaila Tolbert, the Hokies would maintain their advantage all the way up to the media timeout at 15-14. The 'Noles would gain their first lead of the third frame at 17-16 and the rest of match would go back and forth, but Florida State would win in a close one, 25-23.
NOTES
- Smith got back to her ways, posting a team-high 13 kills with seven digs and an ace. She has now led the team in kills in nine matches this fall.
- Tolbert had her fourth consecutive match of 10 or more kills, recording 12, two blocks and a dig. In that four-match span, the Minnesota native has collected 57 kills to average to 3.56 per set.
- Setter Rhegan Mitchell distributed 35 assists, her most in a three-set match since Sept. 23 against Virginia. The redshirt senior had a near double-double, tallying eight digs – her third most of the fall.
- Libero Carol Raffety scooped up 13 digs and had two assists. The California native has collected 71 digs in her last four matches, averaging 4.48 per set.
- Robinson registered five kills and a block, marking her third straight match with five or more kills. The three-match stretch is her best total of kills (16) in three consecutive matches this season.
- Defensive specialist Abby McKinzie tied her season high for digs, totaling four, as well as owning a service ace. The ace marked the Michigan native's first since Sept. 11 against VCU.
QUOTING HEAD COACH JILL WILSON
On the effort the team showed against an opponent in the top three of the ACC standings:
"I thought our team fought the entire match and really got that back, which was a big goal of today," Tech coach Jill Wilson said. "We didn't always execute during some of those long rallies with missing a shot long, but I thought the work ethic was a big improvement and I'm excited to build on that this week."
On which players stood out performance wise:
"Kaity Smith hit some smart shots against a very big block, so I was really excited for the step that she took today," Wilson said. "We'll need for her to keep building on that. Also, I thought Carol Raffety did a very nice job with playing hard defense back there."
On heading back to Blacksburg for two matches with Homecoming and Alumni Weekend taking place:
"We're always excited to play at home," Wilson said. "Our team I think this year has done a really nice job of taking advantage when we play at home. It will be a fun weekend for us with a whole lot going on. We're looking forward to it."
WHAT IS NEXT
- The Hokies will head back to Blacksburg and play host to Syracuse on Friday at 6 p.m. ET and Boston College next Sunday at 1 p.m. ET. The match versus the Eagles will be Senior Day, and both matches will be broadcast on ACC Network Extra.
