Michael Shroyer/SPPSThe Hokies' Jessica Varela pushes the ball down the field while North Carolina State's Katie Ruiz chases during Tech's 3-0 win on Sunday.
VOLLEYBALL EXTENDS WINNING STREAK TO 11
The Virginia Tech women's volleyball team stretched its winning streak to 11 and remained undefeated in the Atlantic Coast Conference this weekend, scoring road wins at Maryland and Boston College.
Tech traveled to College Park, Md., on Friday and defeated the Terps in straight sets, 25-19, 25-19, and 25-23.
The Hokies were in control for the entire match, sparked by a 9-3 run in the opening set. Tech took a 14-7 lead -- its largest of the match -- in the third and final set. The Terrapins eventually sliced the lead down to one, but ultimately couldn't catch the Hokies.
On Saturday, the Hokies took to the road again to face Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Mass. For the second consecutive night, Tech swept the competition in three sets, 25-14, 32-30, and 25-17.
Once again, Tech dominated the match, and with the exception of the second set, it was not close.
With the win, the Hokies improved to 14-2 overall and remained atop the ACC standings with a 5-0-conference record. With the 11-match winning streak, Tech has now matched its longest winning streak in history.
Since the start of ACC play, the Hokies have lost only one set and the team currently has a 21-1 set advantage over its last seven matches.
The Hokies will be back on the road again this week, traveling to North Carolina and North Carolina State on Thursday and Friday.
--by Joe Crandley
MEN'S SOCCER FALLS TO TOP-RANKED WAKE
The Virginia Tech men's soccer team lost to No. 1 Wake Forest, 8-2, on Saturday in Winston-Salem, N.C.
The defending national champions improved their perfect record to 10-0-0, while the Hokies fell to 3-6-1 on the season.
The Hokies first got on the board in the 74th minute when junior defender James Gilson scored his third goal of the season on a penalty kick.
Freshman forward Emmanuel Akogyeram scored his team-leading fifth goal of the season when he netted a ball deflected by the Demon Deacons goalkeeper from four yards out in the 81st minute.
Junior forward Cody Arnoux registered a hat trick for Wake Forest, scoring three goals on five shots against Hokie freshman goalkeeper Thomas St. Germain, who saw his first minutes between the pipes in his collegiate career.
St. Germain played the entire second half, and had one save while allowing five goals. He took over for junior Stefan Caulfield, who had allowed three goals while registering nine saves.
The Demon Deacons outshot the Hokies 25-6 on the night. Tech committed 14 fouls on the home team while Wake Forest committed five.
The match was the first meeting between the two teams since Wake Forest eliminated the Hokies in the semifinals of last year's NCAA Men's College Cup. The Hokies lost that game by a score of 2-0.
--by Ed Lupien
MEN'S TENNIS PLAYS AT ITA ALL-AMERICAN
Three members from the Virginia Tech men's tennis team, seniors Brandon Corace and Nicolas Delgado de Robles, and sophomore Sebastien Jacques, traveled to Tulsa, Okla., to participate in the D'Nova All-American Men's Tennis Championships.
This event featured many of the top collegiate tennis players in the country. Past men's All-American participants include professional stars such as James Blake -- ranked No. 10 in the world -- as well as Bob and Mike Bryan, who are currently the world's top-ranked doubles team.
This is the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's first national event of the 2008-09 season. The tournament features six rounds of pre-qualifying and qualifying matches with the action from Oct. 3 to Oct. 12.
Starting off the pre-qualifying matches with success was Sebastien Jacques, who defeated his opponent, Adham El-effendi from Southern Methodist University, 7-5, 6-3. Corace was not as fortunate in the first round of play -- he was defeated 5-7, 7-5, 6-0 by Andrew Landwerlen from Denver University. Delgado de Robles, who is currently ranked No. 75 in the country, played his first match on Monday,
Jacques' next match in the tournament was against Davey Sandgren from the University of Tennessee, which he lost 1-6, 7-6 (6), 6-4. The loss eliminated Jacques from the tournament.
Robles looked to win his first match on Monday to advance into the Main Draw, which takes place Oct. 9 to Oct. 12.
--by Matt Costello
WOMEN'S SOCCER SCORES SHUTOUT OF WOLFPACK
Tech's women soccer team scored three goals in the second half in its shutout of North Carolina State on Sunday afternoon at Thompson Field. It was the team's first ACC victory of the season, giving it a record of 1-1-2 in the conference and 6-4-2 overall.
After a lethargic first half in which Tech only had four shots (its opponent had five), the Hokies went into halftime with a scoreless tie.
Fortunately for Tech, with 23:48 left to go in the game, junior Julian Johnson got past her defender on the right side of the goal and centered the ball to junior Emily Jukich. She headed the ball past sophomore goalkeeper Rachel Barnette, giving Tech a 1-0 lead.
Tech increased its lead just a few minutes later. With 15:12 left to play, the team got out in front with a two-on-one scenario. Jukich drew the defender and passed the ball from the left side of the net to wide-open sophomore Niki King. King drilled the ball past the oncoming keeper to cushion the lead for the Hokies, making it 2-0.
Shortly thereafter, with 14:10 left to go, Jukich squibbed a ball from the left side of the net that went right through the legs of Barnette, ensuring a Hokie victory.
The Hokies finished the game with 19 shots and one save compared to the Wolfpack, who had just eight shots to go along with five corner kicks and five saves.
True freshman Kristen Carden started in goal for Tech. Redshirt senior Ashley Owens came in with about nine minutes left to go in the game. The two combined for the Hokies' third shutout of the season.
--by Justin Long
FANNING, CORNWALL WIN AT HIGHLAND DUEL
The Tech men's and women's cross country teams both won their respective meets on Friday night, as they traveled to Charlotte, N.C., to face off against Queens University in the Highland Duel. Senior Tasmin Fanning won the overall women's race, and junior Devin Cornwall finished first for the men.
Fanning, who made it two-for-two on the year with her win, finished the three-mile race in 16:54.
Senior Jessica Fanning followed her sister with a second place finish, and juniors Erin Reddan and Natalie Kretzer came in third and fourth.
Fanning's hyped 2008 season has already lived up to its billing. After winning the VT Alumni Relays on Sept. 19 (and finishing her home-course career undefeated), Fanning was also named the ACC Performer of the Week.
For the men on Friday, Devin Cornwall crossed the finish line first with a three-mile time of 15:12. He was supported by senior Bill Berlin, who finished three seconds behind Cornwall in second, and freshman Michael Hammond who came in two seconds after Berlin for third. Tech's top eight runners were all within 16 seconds of each other.
The Highland Duel usually serves as a precursor to the training weekend for the team. With the bulk of the cross-country season getting underway in the coming weeks, the weekend is a final means of getting ready for the men and women.
The Hokies will next compete in the prestigious Chile Pepper Invitational in Fayetteville, Ark. The meet will take place on Oct. 18.
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