WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- The Virginia Tech volleyball team took the first set, but couldn't hold on and fell in four sets (25-18, 19-25, 21-25, 22-25) to the Wake Forest Demon Deacons Sunday on the road at Reynolds Gym.
The loss dropped Virginia Tech's record to 11-16 overall and 4-12 in ACC action.
Cera Powell finished with 14 kills on the day to lead the Hokies attack. Tech had two players reach double figures in digs as Hanna Borer had 16 and Maddie Slagle had 11. From the front row, Sydney Petersen contributed eight blocks and Cara Lewis added six rejections. The Hokies finished with 12 total blocks on the day.
Game Notes
» Anabel Zier had a match-high three aces in the loss.
» Sydney Petersen had a match-high eight blocks.
» Virginia Tech never trailed on the way to winning the first set 25-18.
» Cera Powell had a team-high 14 kills for Virginia Tech.
» Virginia Tech got a team-high 16 digs from Hanna Borer.
» Virginia Tech attackers were helped by a match-high 40 assists from Hanna Borer.
» Borer recorded her 12th double-double of the season
How It Happened
The Hokies won the first point and held the lead the rest of the way to win the first set 25-18. Virginia Tech led by as many as eight points at 12-4 before finishing off the set. Virginia Tech also supplemented their offense with three aces in the opening set. The Hokies also got a solid defensive performance from a front row that blocked five Wake Forest attacks. Offensively, the Hokies hit .478 in the first set which was their best performance of the match. Petersen finished with four kills to lead the attack.
Virginia Tech lost set two 25-19 to tie the match at 1-1. Tech trailed by as many as six points as Wake Forest grabbed the advantage for good at 15-14 in a set that was tied up four times before the Demon Deacons took over in the second half. Wake bounced back and hit .238 in the second set, compared to a .167 in the first. The Hokies hitting percentage dropped to a .133.
A third-set loss put Virginia Tech behind two sets to one. The Hokies came up short by the score of 25-21. The two teams were tied at 14-14 when Wake took the edge, jumping out on the Hokies 20-17. The Demon Deacons scored the last three points of the set to take the 2-1 advantage.
Virginia Tech lost set four and the match, falling 25-22. The Hokies fought back from a nine-point deficit at 14-5, but it wasn't enough as Wake Forest held on to win the set. Tech battled, coming within two at 20-18 after being down by nine. The Hokies fought off two set points but Wake Forest took the 25-22 win. Four blocks were recorded by the Hokies defense in set four, as Zier led the way with three. Borer also added five digs for the defense.
The Hokies are back in action next Saturday, traveling to Boston College to take on the Eagles at 2 p.m.