No. 6 Louisville Sweeps Virginia

Sunday, October 15

LOUISVILLE, KY

1:00 p.m.

University of Louisville

16-2,7-1ACC

Virginia

8-10,1-7ACC

Virginia

Louisville

October 15, 2023 | Women's Volleyball

Box Score Photo Gallery

Cara Cresse leads with nine kills and five blocks

By: Trey Curry

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Middle blocker Cara Cresse hit .538 with nine kills, two aces, and five blocks to lead the No.6-ranked University of Louisville volleyball team to a 25-16, 25-16, 25-16 win over Virginia Sunday afternoon inside L&N Federal Credit Union Arena.

Louisville moves to 16-2 overall and 7-1 in the ACC as they hit .438 with six aces and 12 blocks. Opposite hitter Aiko Jones tallied eight kills, one ace, and two blocks while hitting .500, and outside hitter Anna DeBeer added five kills, one ace, and one block. Setter Elle Glock had 23 assists to go along with two kills and two blocks, while libero Elena Scott recorded seven digs, six assists, and two aces.

Virginia falls to 8-10 overall and 1-7 in the ACC, as Lily Gervase led the way with five kills and two blocks while hitting .500. As a team, the Cavaliers hit .087 with two aces and five blocks.

Louisville next heads to Winston-Salem, N.C., to take on Wake Forest on Friday night. First serve is set for 7 p.m.

Set-by-Set Recap
Set 1
The Cardinals began the match with a 6-1 run, highlighted by two aces from Scott and kills from DeBeer and outside hitter Charitie Luper, to force an early Virginia timeout. Louisville scored once more coming out to total the run at 7-1, but the Cavaliers would briefly halt the momentum with a kill from Chloe Wilson. Later, with the Cards maintaining the lead at 11-6, they went on a 5-1 run, featuring three kills from Jones and one from Cresse, forcing another Virginia timeout with Louisville in control at 16-7. With the Cards leading 19-10, the Cavaliers went on a 3-0 burst to cut the lead to six, but outside hitter Alanna Bankston landed a kill to end their quick run and make it 20-13. Middle blocker Phekran Kong and Luper teamed up for a block to put the Cardinals up 24-16 and at set point, and a Cresse solo block would win the set for the Cards at 25-16 and put them up 1-0 in the match.

Set 2
Louisville was up 4-3 early in the second set before they reeled off five straight points, headlined by kills from Luper, Cresse, and DeBeer and an ace by Jones, to extend their lead to 9-3 and force a Virginia timeout. Later, the Cardinals led 12-5 when the Cavaliers went on a 4-0 run as Regan Trueblood landed two aces to help cut the lead to 12-9. Louisville responded with a 6-2 run, highlighted by two kills from Jones and one from Kong, to take control at 18-11. Later, Louisville led 21-15 before they went on a 4-1 run, featuring solo blocks from Cresse and Kong, to win the set 25-16 and take a 2-0 match lead. The Cardinals hit .464 with one ace and five blocks.

Set 3
The third set featured some early back-and-forth action, with five ties and five lead changes leading to a 6-6 tie. Louisville then reeled off three straight points, headlined by two aces from Cresse, to take the lead at 9-6. Later, Middle blocker Hannah Sherman and Jones teamed up for a block followed by a Jones kill to extend the lead to 13-8 and force a Virginia timeout. A DeBeer ace made it 14-8 coming out, and Louisville would maintain that steady lead until Virginia called another timeout at 19-12. With the score at 20-13 soon after, middle blocker Reese Robins connected with setter Brigitta Petrenko for a kill to make it 21-13 and again to make it 22-15. DeBeer and Sherman teamed up for a block to put the Cards at match point at 24-16, and although Virginia fended off one match point with an Abby Tadder kill, the Cardinals won the set 25-17 on a solo block by Sherman, capping off the sweep. Louisville hit .267 in the final set with three aces and four blocks.