BLACKSBURG, Va. – As if the start of the season isn’t exciting enough, UCF Head Volleyball Coach Jenny Maurer eclipsed her 100th win in the team’s 3-2 win over Virginia Tech on Saturday evening in the Cassell Coliseum.
Three Knights recorded double digits in kills as Avah Armour led the pack with 16 kills followed by Britt Carlson (14) and Heidi Bonde (12). Abby Schomers dished out 40 assists. Armour and Schomers each notched a double-double with 10 digs a piece. In her Black and Gold debut, Sasha Cohen recorded a match-high three aces.
Virginia Tech led the first set off with a 3-0 run, while the Knights quickly turned that around with a 4-0 spurt to take the lead, 4-3. In a back-and-forth battle between the Knights and Hokies, UCF eventually came out with the lead and stuck with it following back-to-back kills from Armour. The Black and Gold continued to hold onto the lead ending set one on a 4-0 run ignited by a kill from Heidi Bonde, 25-15.
Another close start as the Knights and Hokies traded points until an attack error by Virginia Tech followed by a kill from Bonde sparked a three-point run for the Black and Gold. UCF capitalized on a few Virginia Tech mishaps to ignite an 11-0 run, 18-5. The Knights continued to cruise through the remainder of the set as Emily Wilson ended the second set with a kill, 25-10. The Black and Gold notched a .500 attacking percentage in the set, which marked the highest by either team in the match.
UCF struggled to get under its feet in the third set as the Hokies came out and got up to a 12-6 lead. The Knights tried to chip away but could not succumb to Virginia Tech’s offensive attack with 15 kills in the set to earn the 25-19 set win.
The Knights flipped the roles from the previous sets and came out with a 3-0 run to kick off the fourth set. Back-to-back kills from Carlson ignited a 5-0 scoring spurt, 8-3. After a 10-10 deadlock, the Hokies pulled away with the lead following a 3-0 scoring frenzy. The Black and Gold whittled at Virginia Tech’s lead but could not pull away as the Hokies took set four with 25-23.
Carlson started the Knights off with a kill to open up the fifth stanza. As both teams traded points, UCF recorded three consecutive kills to gain the lead but the Hokies weren’t ready to give up just yet. As Virginia Tech tied it up 10-10, the Knights' offensive attack was firing on all cylinders with to take the lead back, 13-10. Armour ended the match with a kill to seal the 3-2 and give the Knights their first win of the 2024 season.
UCF will round out its opening weekend with a match against Charlotte Sunday at 3 p.m.