After splitting two games at home, the Jackets’ volleyball team travelled to Chestnut Hill, Mass. to take on Boston College. Tech lost the first set, but went on to defeat the Eagles 3-1. This was the Jackets’ tenth straight win over Boston College.
In the first set, Boston College began the set with a 3-0 advantage. Effective kills by the Eagles boosted their lead to 11-7 and 23-18 later in the set. Despite seven kills notched by junior rightside hitter Monique Mead, Boston College led the set to win 25-19.
In the second set, the Jackets bounced back with a 25-18 win. The set had back-and-forth action, but Tech solidified its victory at the serving line. Junior libero/defensive specialist Susan Carlson was strong at the service line, giving Tech the serving edge 21-18. Carlson’s four straight serves, included an ace, a Boston College error, a block by sophomore middle blocker Quinn Evans and Mead and a kill by Mead contributed to the Jacket victory.
In set three, the Jackets’ momentum gave them a 25-14 victory. In spite of a quick 4-1 lead by the Eagles, Tech scored five straight points with Carlson’s serving, six points in a row while Evans served and four more consecutive points from Mead’s serving. Mead had four kills, and sophomore outside hitter Ivona Kolak had three.
The fourth set was a close set with the Jackets edging out Boston College 25-21. Junior middle blocker Alexis Woodson and Kolak had three kills, and Mead added seven kills.
On the night, Mead posted 22 kills and 12 digs, her tenth double-double of the season. Sophomore setter Kaleigh Colson had a double-double as well, with 41 assists and 17 digs.
Tech then traveled to College Park, Md., to take on the Maryland Terrapins on Sunday, Nov. 6. It was a strong offensive match for the Jackets as seven different Jackets posted a kill, winning their 15th game of the season.
The first set went back and forth with eight lead changes and 11 ties. This was ended when serving by Evans removed a two-point Maryland lead and gave Tech a five-point lead. Evans finished the set with three service aces. Colson tallied 14 assists and Mead had ten kills.
In set two, the Terrapins quickly reached a three-point lead to ultimately win the set 25-18. Sophomore outside hitter Jennifer Percy, Kolak and Mead tallied three kills each, while Woodson had three blocks in the set.
The third set was close with Tech getting a 25-23 victory. Similar to the first set, there were five lead changes and 10 ties through the set. After a Tech timeout with Maryland up 23-22, Tech rallied to win the set after an error by Maryland and an ace by Mead.
In set four, the Jackets recovered from a Maryland 4-2 lead by tying the set 9-9. Afterwards, each time the Jackets went to the service line, they slowly amassed a few points. Junior libero/defensive specialist Nicki Meyer solidified the Tech win with five consecutive serves for the Tech 25-15 victory. Percy had four kills of her own, and Woodson added three kills.
Against Maryland, Mead tallied 29 kills, and Colson added 51 assists, being her second time this season that she notched more than 50 assists. Sophomore outside hitter Jennifer Percy added eight kills, and Kolak had seven on the day. Woodson added seven kills and four blocks.
The Jackets will play their last two road matches of the season versus North Carolina and NC State. Tech will play in Chapel Hill on Friday, Nov. 11, and in Raleigh on Sunday, Nov. 13.