Demon Deacons Fall to Air Force in Saturday Showing

ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Returning to the hardwood for day two of the Kristen Dickmann Invitational, Wake Forest volleyball took on Air Force during Saturday afternoon (Sept. 6). The Demon Deacons (1-3, 0-0 ACC) ultimately fell to the Falcons (5-0, 0-0 Mountain West) in a 3-0 defeat.

Redshirt junior Olivia Murphy led the Deacs in kills for a second-straight day, finishing with seven. Junior Patrycja Lagida chipped in six kills and six digs.

Senior Emma Farrell led all players with a match-high 14 digs. Her classmate Rian Baker posted 12 assists in the start at setter.

Wake Forest's 13 blocks resulted as a season high, as six players totaled multiple blocks. Freshman Kelis Hawkins led the way with eight, tying her best mark of the early fall.

How it Happened

Back-to-back kills by Olivia Murphy, followed by a Paige Crawford ace, opened set one for the Deacs.
After Sanaa Williams delivered a middle kill and teamed with Patrycja Lagida on a block, Air Force called for an early timeout.
- Wake led 5-1 to start.
The Falcons used a 5-1 run to knot the score at 6-6.
Play went back and forth through the next dozen rallies, as an unsuccessful Air Force challenge led to another tied score (12-12).
Lagida clocked another pair of kills to add points for her Deacs.
Air Force then tacked on six unanswered points to take the lead, 21-16.
- Wake Forest called for a break at its bench.
Stepping back onto the floor, Ryleigh Whitekettle rung a kill from the right side.
Air Force scored on four of its final five tries to win set one, 25-18.
- Lagida and Murphy notched four kills in the first frame.
The competition was even through set two's first several minutes, tied at 8-8.
- Whitekettle and Olivia Fish notably provided scoring for the Wake offense.
Fish kept momentum rolling with a few more hits and an ace by Rian Baker capped a 4-1 Deacon boost.
- Wake stepped in front, 12-9, through the second.
Williams soon tossed an ace, but Air Force plugged in three straight points to force another timeout.
- A kill by the Falcons possessions later saw the margin even again (18-18).
Following additional traded points, two kills by Air Force put the Falcons at set point before winning set two on a Wake Forest attacking error, 25-21.
- Baker had 10 assists through two sets.
The Deacs took advantage of a few Falcon errors to begin set three, tied at 4-4.
A 5-0 push by Air Force led to a Wake timeout, down 9-4.
Sadie Poeck soon entered the match for the Deacs, helping on an immediate 3-0 run.
Blocks by Hawkins kept Wake close by, trailing 12-9 in the third.
- Whitekettle joined her as a playmaker, as the team tied the board at 12-12.
After the Falcons responded with five points in a row, blocks by Whitekettle, Hawkins and Williams evened the score once again (17-17).
Protection at the net played a part in Wake still keeping things close.
Air Force closed the set and match on a final 4-0 surge, winning the frame 25-20.
Wake Forest fell, 3-0.

Standout Stats

Wake Forest recorded a season-high 13 blocks against the Falcons. Six players had two or more:
- Kelis Hawkins – 8 blocks
- Ryleigh Whitekettle – 5 blocks
- Sanaa Williams – 4 blocks (season high)
- Patrycja Lagida – 3 blocks (season high)
- Olivia Fish – 2 blocks (season high)
- Olivia Murphy – 2 blocks (season high)

Additional Notes

The Deacs matched up with Air Force on Saturday for the first time since Aug. 25, 2018.
Totaling 14 digs in the victory, Emma Farrell now has 1,480 for her career and is only 20 away from reaching a milestone mark of 1,500.
Olivia Murphy became the first Deac to lead the team in kills in consecutive matches this fall:
- 7 kills versus Air Force (9/6/25)
- 17 kills versus George Mason (9/5/25)

From Coach Hulsmeyer
"Our main takeaway from this is we simply need to learn from it and quickly, as we prepare for another test tomorrow," said head coach Jeff Hulsmeyer. "It is important to use these moments early in the season so that they do not come back to hurt you again later on. We all want it, but need to learn how to respond when the ball isn't going your way and things get tight. Keep playing with passion… that's the key."

Up Next
The Deacs will wrap their stay in Annapolis on Sunday afternoon (Sept. 7), facing host Navy in a 3 p.m. matchup. The contest can be viewed on ESPN+.

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Team Stats

Olivia Murphy

Patrycja Lagida

Ryleigh Whitekettle

Olivia Fish

Players Mentioned

Rian Baker

Paige Crawford

Emma Farrell

Olivia Fish

Kelis Hawkins

Patrycja Lagida

Olivia Murphy

Sadie Poeck

Ryleigh Whitekettle

Sanaa Williams

Wake Forest Athletics