TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Freshman Aubrey Hamilton earned a game-high 11 kills and the Irish hit .327 as #14 Notre Dame took down Virginia Tech in straight sets (25-14, 25-23, 25-16) on Saturday afternoon inside Tully Gymnasium.
With the win, Notre Dame improves to 10-2 (9-2 ACC) and picks up its third sweep in the last four matches. Saturday also marked Notre Dame’s sixth straight-set victory in the 2020-21 campaign.
Hamilton hit .417 (11-1-24) in the three sets while Charley Niego added eight kills and Lindsey Miller, Hannah Thompson and Caroline Meuth each notched six kills. Zoe Nunez collected 29 assists in the three sets.
Hattie Monson picked up a game-high 13 digs to anchor the Irish defense and Nunez earned 11 digs. Nunez and Nancy Kane each delivered a pair of service aces.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set
The Irish used a 7-1 run, which included two kills by Niego and an ace from Nunez, to take an 11-4 lead and force a Virginia Tech timeout. After the break, the Irish converted the next three points to go up 14-4. Notre Dame stayed in control from there and cruised to a 25-14 triumph in the opening set.
Meuth led the Irish attack with four kills in the stanza while Nunez totaled two aces.
Second Set
A 6-1 run propelled the Irish to an 8-4 lead before three straight kills by Hamilton extended Notre Dame’s advantage to 12-7. The Hokies earned three straight points to get back within two at 18-16 and force an Irish timeout.
Notre Dame responded with a 5-1 run after the timeout, including two more kills by Hamilton, to go up 23-17. The Hokies came back with five straight points to make it 23-22, but Notre Dame held on to take the set, 25-23.
Hamilton totaled a team-high five kills in the frame for the Irish.
Third Set
An 8-1 Irish run, which involved three kills by Hamilton and aces from Kane and Thompson, lifted Notre Dame to a 15-9 lead in the third frame. Miller and Niego each added two kills to push Notre Dame’s lead to 19-11 before an Irish 4-0 run made it 23-13.
A kill by Thompson, Notre Dame’s 16th in the stanza, sealed a 25-16 set win and a sweep for the Irish. As a team, the Irish hit a whopping .640 with zero errors in the third frame.
Up Next
- #14 Notre Dame returns to action next weekend in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, against Wake Forest and North Carolina.
- The Irish meet the Demon Deacons on Saturday (March 20) at 3 p.m. ET before taking on the Tar Heels on Sunday (March 21) at 1 p.m. ET
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