Wake Drops Opener in Four-Set Battle

Friday, October 2

Winston-Salem, N.C.

12 P.M.

Wake Forest University

0-1,0-1ACC

University of Miami

2-1,2-1ACC

Miami (FL)

Wake Forest

10/2/2020 3:29:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – The Wake Forest volleyball team dropped their season opener against ACC foe Miami on Friday afternoon at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

Led offensively by underclassmen Ashley Slater, Olivia Franke, and Peyton Suess, the Demon Deacons edged the Hurricanes 52 kills to 50. The Deacs had more defensive opportunities with 44 digs to the Canes' 41.

How It Happened
Wake opened the first set with back-to-back kills by freshmen Ashley Slater and Olivia Franke to give the Deacs an early 2-1 lead. Another offensive spark tied the match at 11. Service errors caused the Deacs to drop to down by seven. Kills from Slater, Franke, and sophomore Peyton Suess got Wake back within three, but Miami took the match 22-25.

Suess came out strong in the second set, leading the team with six kills, including two consecutives to take the lead late in the set. Back-to-back kills from Suess and Slater sealed the second set victory. Early errors in the third set got the Deacs down early, 8-11. A late-set offensive battle proved not enough to recover and Miami took the set 25-17.

An early hot streak on offense tied the fourth set at five but a Miami spark took them up 10-5. The Deacons found a rhythm late in the set and scored seven points in a row on Miami's match point, but the Canes took the set 25-19 and won the match 3-1.

Coach's Comments
The team's performance…
"We have a lot to work on, but we didn't give up. Our younger players really stepped up and were efficient. Seven points in row on a match point shows how tough we can be to beat. If we can keep that tenacity and stay aggressive, we'll be fine."

Starting two freshmen…
"Slater and Franke are awesome; they did a great job. Their focus is narrow, they know what they need to do, and they're just good volleyball players. They really stepped up and played well for the team."

Notes for tomorrow…
"We have to find the balance between serving consistently and serving with power. If we can serve tough and minimize our errors and then we'll be fine. Our first touch could also use some work, so on both sides of ball, improving our serving and improving our serve receive. If we can get those things in line, we'll be in good shape."

Notable Numbers
Senior setter Maddie Holt was one dig away from a double-double. She tallied 40 assists in the season opener after recording 40+ just four times last season.

In her collegiate debut, Ashley Slater notched 15 kills to lead the match. Peyton Suess and senior Caroline Kuhn also reached double-digits, recording 13 and 10 respectively.

Up Next
The Deacs and Canes will face off tomorrow at 3 p.m. in the second and final match of the series at LJVM Coliseum.