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| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | F | |
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 (21) Duke (17-5) | 25 | 24 | 25 | 20 | 10 | 2 |
 Virginia Tech (11-13) | 18 | 26 | 19 | 25 | 15 | 3 |
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BLACKSBURG, Va. – The Virginia Tech volleyball team held Duke to .193 on the attack to upset the 21st-ranked Blue Devils, 3-2 (18-25, 26-24, 19-25, 25-20, 15-10) on Sunday afternoon in ACC action at Cassell Coliseum.
“I thought we played a great match today,” said head coach Chris Riley. “We showed a lot of grit and determination to come back in the fourth and fifth against a really good Duke team. Our blocking defense in those sets really allowed us to pull that match out.”
Lindsey Owens knocked down 12 to lead a quartet of Hokies (11-13, 4-7 ACC) with double-digit kills. Kathryn Caine and LaTasha Samson-Akpan tallied 11 kills each and Ashley Battled added 10. Jordan Fish and Kyra Coundourides combined to put up 46 assists.
On the defensive side, Megan Beckwith picked up 17 digs and Amanda McKinzie tallied 12. Battle and Owens were also strong on the defense at the net with Battle tallying seven blocks including three solos while Owens had six blocks.
The Blue Devils held the lead midway through the opening set, on top 13-8. Tech would get no closer than five the rest of the way as Duke took the opener 25-18.
Tech took the early lead in the second set, but the Blue Devils came back to tie it up midway through at 13. The Hokies went back on top and was up at 19-17, but again Duke answered, tying it up late at 23. Duke and Tech were tied again at 24, but the Hokies used a kill from McKinzie and a service ace from Beckwith to claim the points for the 26-24 win, knotting the match up at 1-1.
Duke dominated early in the third set, getting out to a 16-7 lead, but the Hokies battled back cutting it to a two point difference at 18-16. Tech trailed by as many again at 21-19, but the Blue Devils scored four straight, holding off the Hokies for the 25-19 win.
The two teams kept it close in the fourth set and were tied at 11-11 before the Hokies scored three straight to take the 14-11 lead off a kill from Owens. Duke scored on the next rally, but Tech continued its momentum, going on top by five at 17-12 as Battle laid down a block. The Blue Devils threatened late, closing within two at 20-18, but the Hokies closed out the set with a 5-2 run to win 25-20 and tie it up at 2-2 in the match.
Virginia Tech came out on fire in the fifth set, getting out to an 11-3 lead off an ace from Beckwith. Duke answered with a run of its own, cutting it down to a three-point difference at 11-8. The Blue Devils were still within three at 12-9 and had the serve, but an error on the next play gave the ball back to the Hokies with a 13-9 advantage. Duke again had an error, but followed it up with a kill to put the score at 14-10 in the Hokies favor. Owens and Samson-Akpan combined for a block on the final play of the match to claim it 15-10 for Tech.
Emily Sklar led Duke (17-5, 9-2 ACC) with 19 kills. Jeme Obeime added 11. Defensively, Sasha Karelove tallied 21 digs while Kelsey Williams had 13. Alyse Whitaker was solid at the net for the Blue Devils with seven blocks.
The Hokies return to the court next weekend, traveling to No. 9 North Carolina on Sunday, Nov. 9 for a 2 p.m. match in Chapel Hill, N.C.
For updates on Virginia Tech volleyball, follow the Hokies on Twitter Follow @VT_VBall
