ORLANDO – UCF volleyball came up short in a back-and-forth match against Wake Forest on Saturday night in the Venue, as the Knights were defeated for the first time this season, 3-2 (21-25, 14-25, 25-11, 25-19, 11-15). The Black and Gold ended an impressive 22 home match win streak, which dated back to Oct. 8, 2021.
“We knew going in how talented they [Wake Forest] were and knew they were going to come at us in different ways,” said head coach Jenny Maurer. “We talk a lot about our identity and our focus on us, who we are and what we stand for and I think that showed in the third and fourth set.”
The Knights (5-1) won the statistical game in kills with 63 and a whopping 12 service aces. While the Demon Deacons (5-0) recorded 55 digs and both teams recorded six total blocks. Abby Hansen and Claudia Dillion each tallied 14 kills boasting an attacking percentage better than .500. Emily Wilson had a strong night with 13 kills and 11 digs to earn her second double-double of the season adding two solo blocks.
The Knights came out flat to begin the night, as the Demon Deacons used an early 4-0 scoring run to take control of the lead. The Knights stayed within arm’s reach throughout the set but were unable to gain the lead which gave the Deacons an early 25-21 lead in the match.
UCF earned the first point of the second set from a Wake Forest attacking error but the Deacons answered once again to take control of the set. The Knights knotted the score at 9-9 with a kill from Dillon, but back-to-back kills from Wake Forest forced UCF to take a timeout. Coming out of the timeout, Dillon put down a kill to trim the deficit to one. The Deacons sparked a 15-3 rally to cruise through set two with a final score of 25-14.
The Knights came out with grit in the third set with a 4-0 run ignited by consecutive kills from Dillon and a block assist. Katelyn Grimes capped off the scoring run with a service ace. The Black and Gold took the momentum from a Wilson kill and ran with it for a 13-1 run to end the set 25-11. UCF increased its attacking percentage to .500, while holding Wake Forest to a -.091 clip.
The Black and Gold continued to take charge in the fourth set as Avah Armour recorded back-to-back kills to give UCF a 2-1 advantage. The Knights continued to pace their way through the set earning the 25-19 set win to force a fifth set off a kill from Wilson.
The Deacons got off to an early 2-0 lead in the fifth stanza. Three consecutive kills from Dillon kept Wake Forest on its heels as the Knights quickly took the lead 3-2. Following a 10-10 deadlock, the Deacons fought hard for a 5-1 rally to win the match 15-11.
The Knights will close out the UCF Challenge on Sunday, Sept. 3 against Alabama State with first serve slated for 3:30 p.m.