THE FLATS – No. 20 Georgia Tech volleyball bested the Hokies of Virginia Tech in three sets on Friday night in O’Keefe Gym to advance to 10-4 overall and 2-3 in conference play. In dominating fashion, the Yellow Jackets swept the Hokies (6-9, 0-5 ACC), holding the visiting team to only 12 points in the second set.
QUICK HITS
- This was the 36th consecutive sold out match at O’Keefe Gymnasium, a streak dating back to the 2021 season.
- Junior middle blocker Liv Mogridge set the standard Friday, leading the team with a .625 hitting percentage in the match.
- Bianca Bertolino continued to her quest to reach 1,000 kills contributing nine in Friday’s match, putting her just three away.
- Larissa Mendes led the Yellow Jackets in kills with 11 as well as recording 10 digs, reaching a double-double for the second straight match
- Luanna Emiliano joined Mendes in the double-double club after recording 32 assists and 10 digs.
- The Yellow Jackets neared their season high for digs (in three sets) with 53, just shy of their season-high of 54 set against Coastal Carolina (9/2/24).
GT VB vs Virginia Tech
Photos by Danny Karnik
SET BY SET
Set 1 (GT 25 – VT 19)
Friday’s contest began in a tight battle as the Hokies established their lead in the first set and forced the Yellow Jackets to play catch up through the first eight points. Georgia Tech battled back to tie the game at nine apiece before slowly putting distance between itself and Virginia Tech. Tech never trailed the remainder of the game, though there were seven ties. Bertolino and Mendes led the team through set one with five kills.
Set 2 (GT 25 – VT 12)
The Yellow Jackets closed the second set in a quick fashion as they went on a four-point run to establish an early 6-2 lead. Virginia Tech couldn’t find a response to Georgia Tech’s offensive game which included nine kills, three aces, and eight blocks. Georgia Tech pushed to put the game out of reach as a six-point run made the score of set three 19-7.
Set 3 (GT 25 – VT 20)
With the game on the line, Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech traded points, with neither team getting more than two points away from each other, until the Yellow Jackets established a three-point lead to make the match 10-7. The Hokies responded with one point, before the Yellow Jackets went on another three-point run. Georgia Tech controlled the game 21-13 before Virginia Tech went on a six-point run to bring the game within two points, but the Jackets closed out the set on a 4-1 run. The third and final set saw five Yellow Jackets record multiple kills with Tamara Otene leading the group with four.
UP NEXT
The Yellow Jackets remain in O’Keefe Gymnasium to finish their ACC weekend against Virginia at 1 p.m. Sunday. Sunday’s match is sold out and will be live streamed on ACC Network Extra.
Alexander-Tharpe Fund
The Alexander-Tharpe Fund is the fundraising arm of Georgia Tech athletics, providing scholarship, operations and facilities support for Tech’s 400-plus student-athletes. Be a part of the development of Yellow Jackets that thrive academically at the Institute and compete for championships at the highest levels of college athletics by supporting the Annual Athletic Scholarship Fund, which directly provides scholarships for Georgia Tech student-athletes. To learn more about supporting the Yellow Jackets, visit atfund.org.
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