NC State volleyball finished its regular season in Charlottesville, Virginia, sweeping the Cavaliers in three straight sets.
The Wolfpack (22-7, 12-6 ACC) finished the season off strong with 45 kills, six service aces and nine total blocks during the sweep — capping off the team’s best record since 2017. UVA (10-17, 3-14 ACC) gained momentum throughout the match, but the red-and-white constantly battled back to get the win.
UVA jumped out to a quick 3-1 lead during the first set — NC State’s single point came from a Cavalier error — but the Pack quickly rebounded. Junior opposite hitter Amanda Rice took control of the court and notched a kill and solo block, and junior middle blocker Jada Allen tallied the team’s first service ace of the night.
After seizing a 15-10 lead on the first frame, it seemed like the Pack was on the road to an easy set win. UVA would go on a 5-1 scoring run late in the set to push the game closer in the Cavaliers’ favor. Rice and junior outside hitter Martyna Leoniak took care of business though, finishing the set 25-22 with a kill each.
Leoniak pushed the Pack forward more within the second set. UVA took another lead, and NC State played catch-up, but Leoniak delivered the kill that gave the red-and-white its first lead of the set. From there, it was all Wolfpack.
Rice tallied a few more kills alongside redshirt sophomore Madison Williams, and junior setter Naomi Cabello gave the Pack another service ace. Finishing the set 25-17, NC State headed into the third set with more swagger — and a comfortable 2-0 lead.
Despite having momentum on its side of the net, the Pack struggled to pull ahead in the third set. There were 10 ties and three lead changes within the third frame alone, more than the two previous sets combined. Like the other two sets, UVA jumped out of the gates to grab an early lead, making NC State work twice as hard to make up the points they lost.
Graduate setter Kristen McDaniel — playing in her last regular season matchup for NC State — scored back-to-back service aces for the Wolfpack, pushing a tie. Allen and Leoniak then took over, elevating the Pack’s net presence to help the team stay in the game. Rice and sophomore outside hitter Ava Brizard, along with Williams, kept the team in offensively, helping the team total 15 out of 25 points in kills. A solo block from Allen was the final nail on the coffin for the Cavaliers, sending the Pack to a 25-19 set win and a clean 3-0 sweep.
The Pack relied heavily on mistakes made by UVA. The Cavaliers finished the match with 21 attack errors, two service errors and two block errors — accounting for 26 of the 75 points given to NC State. While that is a third of the Wolfpack’s points, the visiting red-and-white did play well offensively, hitting .343 as a team by the end of the match. Sophomore middle blocker Lily Cropper hit .750 during the match, followed by Rice with .667 and Williams with .455.
While this was the Pack’s last regular season match, the team may have a shot to make the NCAA Tournament. The selection show is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 26 and will be broadcasted on ESPNU.