Oct. 31, 2008
ATLANTA – Callie Miller hit .524 with 13 kills and Talisa Kellogg added a match-best 15 kills to lead Georgia Tech (16-6, 8-4 ACC) to a 3-0 win against Virginia Tech (17-6, 8-4 ACC) Friday night at O’Keefe Gym. The win was the Yellow Jackets’ fifth sweep in their last six matches and helped Tech remain in a five-way tie for second place in the league standings.
“We got the leadership that we needed from our seniors tonight, and I’m really proud of the scrappy play that our back row provided,” said Georgia Tech head coach Bond Shymansky. “Kellogg seemed unstoppable but was also very patient in her attacking discipline, and Callie Miller was just on fire tonight.
“Every match from here on out is equally important to us, but starting the second half of conference play with a 3-0 win over the league leader is a very good beginning.”
The Yellow Jackets’ defensive play at the net proved to be the difference in the match, as Tech posted 13 blocks to the Hokies’ three. Miller led the way with seven total blocks against Virginia Tech, while setter Allie Niekamp added five blocks in the match.
Niekamp posted her fifth double-double of the season with 38 assists and 12 digs, while Michelle Kandell led Tech’s back row efforts with 17 digs in the match.
The Jackets hit .327 against the Hokies, including a .571 (5-1-7) clip by Bailey Hunter, who had an excellent match on the right side of the court. Chrissy DeMichelis tallied eight kills while hitting .357 on the evening, and Brittany Roderick added four kills on 10 swings while posting four blocks in the match.
Kellogg put down six kills and Miller notched five total blocks to lead the Yellow Jackets to a 26-24 win in the opening set. Trailing 17-15, the Yellow Jackets used a 7-2 run to take a 22-19 lead and then held on for the two-point win behind the arm of Kellogg, who scored each of Tech’s final four points off kills.
Tech closed out the match on a 6-1 run and hit a commanding .444 in the third set to finish off the match. Miller led the way with four kills on four swings while adding a pair of block assists, and Hunter added three kills on three attempts.
Kellogg and Miller both tallied six kills in the second frame and DeMichelis added five more as the Yellow Jackets took a 2-0 match lead with a 26-24 set win. The Hokies scored four straight to take a 22-21 edge, but Tech closed the frame by winning five of the last seven points, including two kills apiece by Miller and DeMichelis.
The Jackets will be back in action Saturday night when they host the Virginia Cavaliers at 8 p.m. Tech welcomes all fans attending the Jackets’ football game against Florida State to stick around campus and attend “Gold Out” at O’Keefe Gym. Fans can also listen to a live radio broadcast of the match on WREK-FM (91.1 in Atlanta/www.wrek.org) while live stats will be available at Ramblinwreck.com.
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