Eagles swept on N.C. trip

Coming off a solid 1-1 performance Columbus Day weekend at home, the volleyball team was hoping to achieve at least the same results this weekend in North Carolina. Unfortunately for Boston College, Wake Forest and Duke had something different in mind.

Both the Demon Deacons and the Blue Devils defeated the Eagles.

Saturday night, BC took on Wake Forest in Winston-Salem, N.C. The Eagles took the first game, 30-28. Wake Forest took an early lead, but BC pulled even at 11-11 on a kill by freshman Taylor Williams. The game was very close, having eight ties in total, but BC was able to hold out for the win.

The Demon Deacons won game two, 30-24, but BC was in it for most of the game. After tying the score at 23-23, the Eagles had a letdown, with Wake Forest winning seven out of the next eight points and taking the game.

Maybe the closest game in the match, game three had a total of 11 tie scores and three lead changes. BC was winning 24-21, but Wake Forest won six straight points to take the lead at 27-24. The Demon Deacons never looked back, taking the third game by a score of 30-26.

Game four started out similar to the other three - a close contest. With Wake Forest winning 21-19, the Demon Deacons won nine out of the last 15 points to take game four, 30-25, and the match, 3-1. While the loss is disheartening, BC's Kristin Kenney had a solid showing. The defensive specialist recorded 54 assists, a match-high for the senior.

The first match of the weekend proved to be a tough test: the ACC-leading Duke Blue Devils, who are undefeated in league play and 16-2 overall. The Eagles dropped a tough decision, 3-0, which was a closer match than the score indicated. After falling behind 4-1 in the first game, the Eagles rallied. With the score at 9-6, the two teams played relatively even until three straight kills by Duke freshman Rachael Moss gave the Blue Devils a 30-21 win.

The second game was a close one, with BC taking a 12-9 lead. Duke junior Ali Hausfeld then served five straight points, giving Duke a 17-13 lead, but the Eagles fought back, taking eight of the next nine points to make the score 29-28. On the ensuing play, however, Duke registered a kill, ending the game at 30-28.

Duke jumped out to a quick 15-3 lead in the third game. The closest the Eagles got was 26-16, but the Blue Devils served four straight points to take the game and the match.