Deacs Fall Just Short in Five-Set Sunday Outing Versus No. 11 Georgia Tech

Sunday, October 1

Winston-Salem, N.C.

1 P.M.

Wake Forest University

11-4,2-2ACC

Georgia Tech

13-1,4-0ACC

Georgia Tech

Wake Forest

Photo by: Eric Roth

Deacs Fall Just Short in Five-Set Sunday Outing Versus No. 11 Georgia Tech

10/1/2023 5:04:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

Group effort, gritty moments and heady plays headlined a thrilling Sunday afternoon inside of Varsity Arena.

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Opening the month of October with its first nationally-ranked test of 2023, Wake Forest volleyball maintained an admirable fight as a unit on Sunday afternoon (Oct. 1), hosting the No. 11 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. Sets were traded and competitive play persisted through three hours before Georgia Tech was able to squeeze out a 3-2 win.

Paige Crawford recorded her second double-double in as many matches, totaling 17 kills and chipping in 10 digs. It was the sophomore's fourth double-double of the fall.

New season highs in kills (19) and blocks (7) happened for freshman hitter Ava Carney. Her classmate, Olivia Fish, notched 13 kills for her third season performance of double-figures in that category. Fish's line also included a .321 hitting clip and four digs.

Sunday featured the eighth time this year that Wake Forest had three or more individuals register 10 or more kills in a single match.

Emma Farrell was the match leader in digs for a second time this weekend, finishing with 15. Kalani Whillock added eight.

Making a second consecutive start, Kylie Adams tossed out 34 assists and chipped in six digs. Her total in assists tied for a match high. Rian Baker had 20 assists.

The contest ultimately ended as the first time Georgia Tech has been forced into a fifth set this year.

Wake Forest finished with an advantage in kills, digs and assists over the nationally-ranked Yellow Jackets.

How it Happened

Kylie Adams set up Olivia Franke on the right for a first kill of the day on the first possession.
After Georgia Tech committed back-to-back errors, a block by Franke and Paige Crawford upped the early Deacon lead to 4-1 in set one.
Georgia Tech scored five times in a row to go in front, 6-4.
- A service error by the visitors broke their run.
  - Emmy Ogogor then followed on a middle swing.
Kills by Olivia Fish and Ogogor resulted in an 8-8 tie.
The Yellow Jackets suffered mistakes on three consecutive attacks, as Wake Forest took advantage (12-10).
Ava Carney made a couple of nice plays both offensively and defensively, to stretch the avantage.
- By the first media timeout, Wake Forest led 15-11.
A few hits landed by Georgia Tech cut down the deficit, 16-15.
- Olivia Fish had a response, punching back-to-back kills from the right.
Putting together a 4-1 push, the Yellow Jackets found themselves back ahead once again, 19-18.
- Crawford knocked in a ball immediately afterward before lining a service ace.
  - Georgia Tech quickly regrouped.
The two sides traded kills and the Yellow Jackets delivered an ace of their own.
Wake Forest took a timeout after going down 23-21.
Reaching set point on a kill, Georgia Tech finished the frame on a lengthy rally that was capped on another kill, 25-22.
- Ogogor made the most of her looks on attacks during the opening set, going 4-of-5 with only one error (.600).
The Deacons scored on three of their first four possessions in set two.
- Georgia Tech eventually created an early tie at 4 all.
Fish played a role in keeping things tightly played, with Wake Forest up 9-8 after the freshman hitter delivered a pair of balanced swings.
- Rian Baker entered the match for her Deacs.
Helped by the presence of its hitters, Wake Forest hung on to a two-point lead through the several minutes (14-12).
- Carney then hunted down a kill with aggression and Georgia Tech subsequently took a floor break.
Ogogor caught fire in her hitting, as Wake Forest jumped ahead 19-15.
The Yellow Jackets would not go away quietly in the set, piecing a 3-0 run.
- After a successful challenge by the Deacons, things sat at 20-18 in their favor.
  - The gym erupted on a key, connected block by Franke and Carney.
Errors proved to hurt Georgia Tech down the stretch, and Wake Forest took the second set, 25-22.
- Crawford continued to show solid defense, collecting seven digs through two sets.
The day's heavy competition swung right into set three, with both teams delivering blows.
- The scoreboard soon read 8-8.
Georgia Tech found a bit of breathing room, 13-10, while Carney and Crawford continued to deliver from the left side of the floor.
In a matter of moments, Crawford exploded for three kills in a row, evening things at 13-13.
- A timeout was called on the floor in the midst of set three.
Crawford refused to cool down, putting Wake Forest up 16-15.
Georgia Tech had an answer, however, tallying four points in consecutive fashion.
- The visitors took a 19-16 leap.
Carney became an anchor within the Deacons' offensive attack to keep her squad close by, 22-21.
- Service errors by Wake Forest allowed Georgia Tech to reach set point.
The Yellow Jackets won the third on a final ace, again 25-22.
- Crawford had 14 kills and nine digs at the time while Kylie Adams sat at 23 assists.
Having entered the contest near the end of set three, Dior Charles opened the fourth with a swift hit from the middle.
- Fellow freshmen Carney and Fish chipped in while Wake Forest stood at a 7-4 mark early.
  - The former soon made an eye-popping jump and extended the advantage to 10-7.
Stellar protection at the net helped the Black and Old Gold stay in front (13-9).
- Crawford slammed a ball down hard and into the stands on the next play.
Georgia Tech made a few heady plays and laced two aces to trim the score to 17-15.
Carney would not be denied, skying for kills and blocks to again bump the lead up to four.
Different Deacs contributed in the set's closing moments, as the team secured a 25-21 win in the fourth set.
Georgia Tech started the fifth up 4-1.
- Wake Forest called for a timeout.
Aces bumped the Yellow Jackets' margin up to 8-2.
After switching sides of the court, the Deacs found success on three of their next four tries.
Georgia Tech scored twice more before Wake Forest copied the same.
- The visitors led 11-7 at the time of action in set five.
  - The Yellow Jackets reached a 13th point before Carney punched in three straight kills.
Final chances took place but Georgia Tech needed just enough to escape with a 15-12 victory in the fifth.
Wake Forest fell, 3-2.

Standout Stats

Paige Crawford reached her second double-double in a row and fourth of the fall campaign:
- Versus No. 11 Georgia Tech (10/1/23): 17 kills and 10 digs
- Versus Clemson (9/29/23): 16 kills and 11 digs
- Versus App State (9/15/23): 20 kills and 17 digs
- Versus Grand Canyon (8/27/23): 10 kills and 11 digs
Wake Forest collected more kills, digs and assists than Georgia Tech:
- Kills: 66 – 56
- Digs: 58 – 57
- Assists: 60 – 49
Olivia Fish had her third fall performance of 11 or more kills:
- Versus No. 11 Georgia Tech (10/1/23): 13 kills
- At Kennesaw State (9/8/23): 11 kills
- At Central Florida (9/2/23): 17 kills

Additional Notes

Following a 36-assist performance on Friday in a sweep over Clemson, Kylie Adams' 34 on Sunday makes it the first time in her career she has pieced back-to-back performances of 30 or more.
- The senior also made consecutive starts for the first time this season.
Ava Carney has posted 11 or more kills in 10 of the team's 15 matches up to date.
Emma Farrell has scooped 15 or more digs on eight separate occasions.
Olivia Franke averaged 6.0 blocks for the weekend.

From Coach Smart

"That was an absolute dogfight of a volleyball match," said head coach Randi Smart. "Georgia Tech's record and national standing speaks for itself, and I felt we competed well as a whole. As always, there are some things we could've cleaned up and done better, but no one here is questioning the fight and effort from our group. I am proud to continue to coach them and am excited to see how we keep progressing through October and beyond. Getting back on the road this upcoming week will test us in various ways."

Up Next

Wake Forest jumps back into travel next week for its first conference road matches of the year, visiting Boston College (Oct. 6) and Syracuse (Oct. 8).

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