Youngstown State University
8-2
Virginia
6-2
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virginia | 20 | 25 | 25 | 22 | 16 | 2 |
| Youngstown State | 25 | 22 | 20 | 25 | 18 | 3 |
YSU Beats Virginia in Five for First Win Over ACC School in 12 Years
9/12/2014 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
The Youngstown State volleyball team used strong contribution throughout its lineup and hit .370 in the fifth set to beat Virginia on Friday evening at the Northwestern Wildcat Classic. The set scores were 25-20, 22-25, 20-25, 25-22, 18-16.
Lexi Egler posted a career-high 22 kills, and Nikki Thompson had a career-high 29 digs in the victory. Sam Brown and Lauren Thompson added double digits in kills, and Val Jeffery posted 54 assists. Jeffery and Egler both had double-doubles, and the Penguins hit .267 as a team.
YSU earned its first win over an Atlantic Coast Conference school since beating NC State on Aug. 31, 2002. The Penguins improved to 8-2 on the year while Virginia dropped to 6-2. The Cavaliers were 6-0 before losing to Loyola Chicago, YSU's opponent on Saturday, earlier Friday.
"I can't tell you how proud I am of this team right now for bouncing back from the loss against Northwestern to beat a quality team like Virginia," YSU head coach Mark Hardaway said. "Virginia was so athletic, and, at times, we couldn't stop them. The team really kept its composure and just kept working to put pressure on them."
"Lexi had a monster match to go with a strong performance from Aly, Laure, Val and Nikki. Right now it seems like someone different steps up when we need it. I really feel like this is one of the best wins we have had in my three years here."
The Penguins had 17 kills, including six from Egler, in the opening set to win 25-20. Virginia took the next two sets 25-22 and 25-20, but six more kills from Egler in the fourth set helped the Penguins even the match with a 25-22 win.
YSU never trailed in the fifth set, but it had to fight through 13 ties. Virginia staved off three match points before back-to-back kills from Lauren Thompson and Brown gave the Penguins the 18-16 win.
Natalie Bausback led the Cavaliers with 18 kills.
Youngstown State will conclude its stay at the Wildcat Classic on Saturday at 5:30 p.m. against the Ramblers.
