Old Dominion Volleyball has something special brewing in their program’s fifth season. They’ve blown past their previous best start in program history, won six straight for the first time and completely wrecked Big Ten member Rutgers last night. If the 9-2 Monarchs take care of business Friday and Saturday, they will need just three more wins to match their highest season win total.
As Mike pointed out in the Gameday Central post, ODU is hosting the Old Dominion Invitational, playing Radford on Friday at 6pm and Maryland Eastern Shore Saturday at 4pm. If you aren’t already on the Volleyball bandwagon, the time to join is now.
George Mason Invite
After the Monarchs thrilling comeback win over George Mason, ODU knocked off Quinnipiac 3-1. The Bobcats took the first set 25-23, but the Monarchs rallied to win the next three sets 25-21, 25-17 and 25-23. In the final matchup, Old Dominion swept Navy in three sets 25-19, 25-22 and 26-24.
Head Coach Fred Chao’s return to his alma mater could not have gone any better. The Monarchs went 3-0 while Ashlynn Belcher and Elisa Maggi were named to the All-Tournament Team.
Old Dominion Invitational
ODU faced off with Big Ten opponent Rutgers to kick off the Old Dominion Invitational. It’s the second time this season the Monarchs have faced off against a Power 4 conference opponent this season.
While the balance of power is a little different in Volleyball than for Football and Basketball, Power 4 conferences still have a significant edge in funding and resources. ODU Volleyball scattered that edge like Sonic rings Thursday night. It’s their second ever win over a Power 4 team.
The Monarchs trailed 10-8 early in the first set before kills from Maggi and Emma Schelah tied things up. It was the start of a 6-0 run, capped by kills from Myah Conway and another for Maggi to push the ODU advantage to 14-10.
Rutgers rallied to tie the contest at 17-17 and then again at 24-24 with intense back and forth rallies. The Scarlet Knights then committed an attack error to put ODU in front 25-24 and Maggie made them pay, notching her sixth kill of the set and securing the opening frame for the Monarchs.
With the score tied 11-11 in the second set, Old Dominion shifted to a different gear and left Rutgers in the dust. The scoring came from all over, Conway had a kill, Schelah and Elisabeth Levick served up aces and the Monarchs strong play forced a few Scarlett Knight attack errors. ODU quickly built a 21-12 advantage. Kate Kilpatrick finished off the set with an ace to lock up the 25-14 victory.
Rutgers made an early run at it in the third set, taking a 3-0 lead. But Old Dominion responded with a 6-0 run and then later, a four point streak capped with a block by LeeAnne Lowery and Hailee Blankenship to make it 22-11. The Monarchs cruised to a 25-14 victory to complete the sweep.
