Sept. 22, 2006

Box Score

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. --- Megan Owens had career highs of 16 kills and 21 digs, but North Carolina dropped its second straight Atlantic Coast Conference match to Virginia, 37-35, 30-19, 25-30, 30-14, Friday night at Memorial Gymnasium. Four Cavaliers finished with double-digit kills, led by Katie Oakes' 20. Amy Beaver added 14 kills for the Tar Heels.

Virginia (8-3, 1-1 ACC) opened the match on fire, notching seven kills and two blocks before committing its first error, as the Cavaliers took a quick 10-3 lead. But Carolina (3-9, 1-2 ACC) would respond with a 9-4 run, punctuated by a Christine Vaughen ace. A Beaver kill tied the game for the first time at 16, and Noelle Dyk's kill gave the Tar Heels their first lead at 20-19. The two teams were practically even the rest of the way, with neither squad able to mount a lead of more than two points. UNC had the first crack at game point, but the Wahoos fought that off with a block. Between the two teams there would be nine more attempts at closing out the frame before UVa's Lindsay Osco finally ended it with a kill, 37-35.

The Cavalier offense carried Virginia through game two, as the hosts rolled to a 30-19 win. UVa outhit Carolina .295 to .085, and the Wahoos committed just four attack errors. Virginia took the lead for good at 5-4, and the lead swelled to four at 13-9, forcing a Tar Heel timeout. UNC would get no closer than four, however, as the Cavs won 10 of the next 13 points.

In an evenly matched game three that saw both teams hit .300, the Carolina middles were the difference. Beaver and Heather Brooks combined for 12 kills and just one attack error on 20 swings. Brooks put down the game winner off a Virginia overpass, as the Tar Heels triumphed, 30-25. After a Carolina ball handling error tied the score at 19, Brooks had a hand in the next three points, contributing two kills and teaming with Ingrid Hanson-Tuntland for a block. The Wahoos would get no closer than two the rest of the way.

After committing just five attack errors in game three, the Tar Heels committed five in the first 15 points of game four and dug an early hole. The slow start, combined with the strong play of the Virginia block, saw Carolina get down 12-6 and forced to use a timeout. The Cavalier lead would swell to nine at 20-11 before the Tar Heels used their second and final timeout. Ultimately, UNC was unable to slow down the UVa offense, as the hosts hit .536 for the frame and .318 for the match, and the Wahoos closed it out, 30-14.

Virginia finished the match with 18 team blocks, led by Shannon Davis with 10 and Oakes with eight.

Carolina returns home for a Wednesday night match with Wake Forest. First serve for that contest is set for 7:30.