While Wake Forest Volleyball’s opening weekend left them 2-1, and last weekend’s stand at the Iowa State Invitational was less than desirable, the Demon Deacons were perfect in this past weekend’s trip to Columbia, S.C.
The Demon Deacons started the weekend on a spooky Friday the 13th against Florida International University. FIU (2-8) struck early by winning the first two sets, each 25-23. The Demon Deacons bounced back but not without suspense, taking the next two sets by scores of 25-22 and 25-23. The neck-and-neck action set up an ultimate fifth set, where the Demon Deacons would win 15-12.
Despite the tight contest, it was a fantastic statistical outing for Wake Forest. Jaime Santer, Olivia Franke and Laila Ricks all had career highs in kills (20; 19; 16). Friday night’s three-headed monster was even more impressive with Santer recording 9 digs, while Ricks and Franke had 8 and 6 blocks, respectively. Tina Grkovic also totaled a match-high 12 blocks, helping the Demon Deacons lead the Panthers in blocks 18-5. Freshman Becca Bellows continued to impress, achieving a career-high 32 assists and 8 digs.
On Saturday, Wake Forest took on the Stetson Hatters (3-5) and took care of business. The match was a 3-0 sweep, and none of the sets were particularly close (25-10; 25-19; 25-10).
Tina Grvokic was the Demon Deacons’ anchor for that match, totaling 10 kills and 8 blocks — both being match-highs. The Serbia native also had an elite hitting percentage of 83.3%. Meanwhile, outside hitter Paige Crawford had 8 kills, 6 digs and a pair of blocks.
The Demon Deacons dominated the Hatters on all fronts, but the stat of the night was hitting percentage. Wake Forest had a team hitting percentage of 39.5% compared to Stetson’s -1.2%.
To cap off their 150-mile road trip, the Demon Deacons took on the hosting South Carolina Gamecocks. South Carolina rallied in the first set, scoring 9 consecutive points, knotting things up at 22. However, the Demon Deacons regrouped and won 25-23. The Gamecocks were fired out of a cannon for the second set, starting out with a 6-0 lead.
Wake Forest would eventually make things interesting, but to no avail, as they would succumb to their border-state foes 25-21 to make it an even match. However, the Demon Deacons flipped a switch and cruised to a 3-1 match victory, taking the next two sets 25-17 and 25-18. Wake Forest handed South Carolina their second loss — sending the Gamecocks to 7-2 on the season.
The Demon Deacons will have a four-match homestand to cap off the month. They take on the Appalachian State Mountaineers this Friday, Sept. 20, and the Davidson Wildcats will travel up I-40 to play an always-fun, in-state matchup on Sunday, Sept. 22.
To round out the month, Wake Forest will take a crack at their first ACC opponents who just happen to share a state — Virginia (8-1) on Friday, Sept. 27, and Virginia Tech (4-4) on Sunday, Sept. 29. Wake Forest will be both teams’ first ACC matchup, and the Demon Deacons look to ride their hot streak into conference play.
