After the football team grinded out its first ACC win in nearly two years on Saturday, Boston College volleyball (6-16, 1-11 Atlantic Coast) snapped a conference losing streak of its own on Sunday against Wake Forest (9-14, 5-7).
Senior Julia Topor totaled a career-high 20 kills and seven digs as the Eagles earned their first ACC win of 2016, three sets to one, over the visiting Demon Deacons. Anna Skold helped the squad off to a hot start, tallying a block in the first set that extended the BC lead to 12-8. Wake battled back later in the set and cut the deficit to 23-22, but the Eagles came away with the final two points, holding on to a 25-22 victory.
BC took a two-set advantage after Topor and McKenna Goss recorded back-to-back kills, giving the Eagles a lead that they would never relinquish. The Demon Deacons pulled within a point again at 22-21, but BC continued its stellar play late in the set en route to a 25-23 win.
The Eagles struggled in the third set, dropping the first 10 points. They could not recover from their slow start, though, and lost their first set of the afternoon by a score of 25-12.
The fourth set was a game of runs, as Wake streaked out to an early 9-6 lead. BC responded with a 7-0 run, maintaining a comfortable 15-10 cushion with its first conference win only 10 points away. But the Demon Deacons made things interesting when they went on a 5-1 run and recaptured a 16-15 advantage. Head coach Chris Campbell called a timeout to talk things over, and the Eagles came out firing after the break. Shortly after, they regained the lead and put the back-and-forth affair to bed with a 25-22 win. After weeks of brutal conference losses, Campbell & Co. registered their first ACC win of the season.
The all-around team effort included stellar play from Cat Balido, who racked up 10 kills and three blocks up front. Jill Strockis also filled the stat sheet with six kills, three blocks, and two aces. Now that the team’s least-favorite streak is behind them, BC will look to start a new, more flattering streak at home against Syracuse on Wednesday.
Featured Image by Taylor Perison / Heights Staff
