NOTRE DAME, Ind. — The Notre Dame volleyball team earned a sweep (25-21, 25-18, 25-10) over Virginia on Sunday afternoon at Purcell Pavilion.
With the victory, Notre Dame improves to 15-5 overall and 8-2 in the ACC.
Charley Niego posted a game-high 11 kills while classmate Sydney Bent totaled 10 kills. Zoe Nunez earned 30 assists in the three sets.
Nunez and Madison Cruzado tied for a team-high eight digs. As a team, the Irish limited Virginia to a hitting percentage of .022.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set
An 8-2 stretch, which included three kills by Meuth, helped the Irish jump out to a 10-6 lead to open play. Virginia answered with seven straight points to go up 13-10 and force an Irish timeout. After the break, Notre Dame used a 4-0 run to even the set at 15-all. The sides worked to a 21-21 deadlock before kills by Wenzel and Niego put Notre Dame up 23-21 and forced a Virginia timeout. Back-to-back kills by Bent after the timeout clinched the 25-21 set win for the Irish.
Second Set
A 5-1 Irish stretch put the hosts up 13-10 in the second stanza before Virginia battled back to tie the frame at 16-16. Notre Dame used a 5-0 run, which included a kill and block by Wenzel, to earn a 23-18 advantage and force Virginia to take a timeout. An ace by Nunez and a Cavaliers attack error extended the Irish run to 7-0 and gave Notre Dame a 25-18 win in the second set.
Third Set
An ace and kill by Wenzel helped the Irish earn five straight points to open the third set and another 5-0 run stretched Notre Dame’s lead to 10-1. The Cavaliers responded with five consecutive points to cut the Irish lead to 10-6. The Irish took control of the frame for good with a 7-1 stretch that gave them a 17-7 advantage. Notre Dame closed the stanza on an 8-1 run, which culminated with Niego’s 11th kill of the match. In the 25-10 set win, the Irish hit .300 while limiting Virginia to -.103.
UP NEXT
The Irish hit the road next weekend to take on Syracuse and Boston College. The Irish meet the Orange on Friday, November 1st at 7 p.m. before taking on the Eagles on Sunday, November 3rd at 1 p.m.
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—ND—