Luke Mason/SPPSSenior guard Laura Haskins drives toward the lane against a UNC Greensboro defender during Tech's 59-53 opening-game win on Nov. 14.
An energetic Virginia Tech women's basketball team took to the floor for the first time this year in Cassell Coliseum to beat the Spartans of UNC Greensboro 59-53 on Friday night.
Thanks to the late shooting of guard Lindsay Biggs, scoring six points over the final 1:47, the Hokies preserved the victory.
Tech scored 10 unanswered points in the opening minutes to build a large lead, along with stifling play on the other end of the floor.
Junior guard Lakeisha Logan led the team with 10 points after the first half. Junior forward Utahya Drye trailed Logan with nine points and shoT 50 percent from the field.
At the close of the first half, the Hokies were comfortably leading the Spartans by a score of 37-18.
The Spartans quickly closed the lead at the beginning of the second half to 37-26 with seven unanswered points before a Hokie timeout.
UNC Greensboro was able to close within three points during the closing minutes of the game while fans held their breath as flashbacks surfaced from last season's many close defeats.
Drye lead her teammates with 15 total points followed by Biggs with 14, and Logan with 12.
Lakiah Hyson and Amanda Leigh both led the Spartans in total points with 11 each.
Despite the loss of their star guard Brittany Cook, who is out for the season with a torn ACL, Tech was able to beat UNC Greensboro to start the season on the winning foot.
One individual who stepped up was Logan, who beat her previous career-high of five points -- finishing with 12.
The Hokies will try to open up with a two-game win streak when they host the Radford Highlanders tonight at 7 p.m. in Cassell.
--by Hattie Francis
VOLLEYBALL ENDS HOME SEASON WITH SWEEPS
The Tech volleyball team finished off the home portion of its schedule in positive fashion, sweeping Boston College and Maryland over the weekend.
Clearly overmatched, BC fell victim to the Hokies in straight sets on Friday afternoon, 25-9, 25-17 and 25-16.
Sophomore Felicia Willoughby led the charge, picking up 14 kills and no errors to go along with an outstanding .778 attack percentage.
Tech (20-8, 11-6 ACC) came out on fire, taking a quick 7-1 lead without much of a challenge.
The Hokies eventually finished off the Eagles on a thunderous Willoughby kill, ending the set in less than 20 minutes.
The Eagles started the second set with some success, taking a 4-1 lead. But Tech quickly responded with five consecutive points.
Despite their sloppy play, Boston College hung in with the Hokies, but freshman Justine Record killed any momentum BC had left with back-to-back aces -- sparking a 6-2 run which helped Tech win the set, 25-17.
The Hokies again played terrific defense, holding the Eagles to a .207 hitting percentage and only allowing nine kills.
As the third set began, the Eagles were clearly deflated, playing sluggishly and unable to keep up.
Boston College got down early, giving Tech a 14-3 lead that would not be relinquished. The Hokies cleared the bench before taking the set, 25-16.
The next evening, Sarah Muņoz and Kristen Cunningham were honored on Senior Night, prior to Tech's straight-set win over Maryland.
The Hokies built momentum beginning in the middle of the first set. Led by Cunningham, who tallied five kills in the frame and posted a .833 attack percentage, the Hokies never gave up the lead after the score was tied at 11.
The second set was more of the same as Tech built a 12-7 advantage. Willoughby led the Hokies in the second set with five kills as they went on to win 25-19.
Maryland would come back, however, building a 6-11 lead in the third set. But, a strong 9-3 run by the Hokies, ending with two Willoughby kills and a service ace by Muņoz, gave Tech the 15-14 lead that they did not surrender. Tech took the third set 25-19, finishing off the Terps with a five-point run and a final Cunningham kill.
The Hokies finish the season with three straightaway matches at Wake Forest, Duke and Virginia.
-- by Joe Crandley and Steven Malik
FANNING FIRST HOKIE TO WIN REGIONAL TITLE
Senior All-American Tasmin Fanning led the Tech cross country team this weekend by becoming the first Hokie to ever win a regional meet, placing first in the NCAA Southeast Regional in Clemmons, N.C.
Fanning, who finished third in the same event last year, bested the field of 231 runners with a time of 20:08 in the 6k race. The next Hokie to cross the finish line was senior Erin Reddan, who came in 20th. She was followed by senior Jess Fanning (50th), junior Natalie Kretzer (56th) and freshman Lauren Pinkston (99th).
With her 20th place finish, Reddan finished her Tech running career by garnering All-Region honors.
Tech ultimately placed seventh among the 33 teams at the meet. Virginia won with three runners finishing in the top 10. Kentucky, UNC, Duke and William & Mary rounded out the top five.
Fanning also received a bid to nationals, representing Tech individually as one of the favorites in the event. Fanning placed 12th out of 255 in 2007.
For the men, senior Phillip Padilla was the highest-placing Hokie, finishing the 10k run in 23rd with a time of 31:23. He also ended his Tech career with an All-Region distinction.
Junior Devin Cornwall followed Padilla in 26th, with sophomore Matt Kroetch in 34th, freshman Brian Welch in 55th, and freshman Mike Hammond in 61st. There were 212 runners in the 29-team field.
The men's team also finished seventh place overall, behind winner William & Mary.
Neither the men nor women's teams qualified for the NCAA Championships. Fanning will be the lone individual representative for Tech at nationals, which will be held Nov. 24 in Terre Haute, Ind.
-- by Matt Collette
TECH WRESTLING DOMINATES FIRST-EVER HOKIE OPEN
At the first-ever Hokie Open held at the Salem Civic Center this past Sunday, four Hokies came out with the title in their respective weight class while wrestling unattached.
Red-shirt sophomore Will Livingston, who is a transfer from Ohio State, had a 5-2 decision against Jeremy Shaw from UNC in the final round for 133, landing him the title. To reach the final round, Livingston had to wrestle sophomore teammate Jared Jones where he picked up a 20-5 technical fall, easing him into the final.
At 141 pounds, sophomore Chris Diaz came out on top with an 11-5 decision over ODU's Brennan Brumley in the final round, coming in first with the title at that mark.
At the 157 mark, freshman Jesse Dong stood his ground and came up big with a fall at 3:35 over Liberty's Josh Duren for the title.
At 174 pounds, red-shirt freshman Anthony Trongone had a 3-2 decision over ODU's Eric Decker, also gaining the title in his respective weight class.
Tech dominated in its first tournament, taking four of the nine titles available. Other Hokies such as David Marone, DJ Bruce and Jarrod Garnett, came in second in their respective classes, while Brock LiVorio and Matt Epperly came in third, and Tim Miller and AJ Johnson finished in fourth.
The Hokies will again be competing unattached this weekend as they travel to Annapolis, Md. to take part in the Navy Classic on Saturday.
-- by Lindsay Faulkner
WOMEN'S SOCCER OUT IN FIRST ROUND OF NCAA TOURNAMENT
The Tech women's soccer team lost in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday evening, falling by a score of 2-0 to the Brigham Young Cougars in Provo, Utah.
The scoring started when BYU's Kassidy Christensen found the net in the 38th minute. After denying the visiting Hokies on several occasions, the Cougars extended their lead.
Thanks to the team's leading scorer, Katie Larkin, BYU opened up a two-goal advantage. Larkin shot one past Tech freshman goalkeeper Kristin Carden in the 76th minute of play.
With the loss, the Hokies finished 10-9-4, coming within one victory of tying the program record for wins in a single season. The Cougars improved to 18-5-0 before bowing out in the next round in a loss to the fourth-seeded Southern California Trojans.
-- by Brian Wright
You might be interested in... women's soccer, wrestling, cross country, volleyball, women's basketball
