Air Force Falls to Virginia Tech in Tournament Finale

USAF ACADEMY, Colo. – The Air Force volleyball team closed out the Amy Svoboda Memorial Classic with a 3-1 loss to Virginia Tech this evening (Sept. 14) at the Academy. The Falcons, playing their second match of the day, fell to the visiting Hokies in 15-25, 19-25, 25-23, 21-25 sets.

Sophomore Bailey Keith registered a match-high 18 kills, as Air Force out-killed Virginia Tech by a 51-45 margin. She was one of three Falcons to tally double-digit kills, as freshman BrookeLyn Messenger and sophomore Vittoria Juarez each accounted for 10. Junior Alex King led the team in digs (20) and aces (two), while classmate Andi Ahlers accounted for a match-best 38 assists. While the Falcons outgained the Hokies in kills, Virginia Tech held a 10-1 advantage in blocks, as Juarez and junior Mackenzie Robertson teamed up for the Falcons' only stop of the night.

Early attacking woes plagued the Falcons as Virginia Tech jumped out to a fast 13-3 lead. Cooper stopped the Hokies' run with a kill (4-13), while Keith later recorded three kills in four Air Force points to bring the score to 11-19. Virginia Tech responded with five of the next six scores to double the Falcons up 12-24. King recorded back-to-back service aces to hold the Hokies at set point, but Virginia Tech tallied the final point to take the opening set by 25-15.

Galloway (1-1) and Keith (2-2) tallied set-tying points to open the second set, but Virginia Tech used a 5-1 run to take a 7-3 lead. Freshman Sarah Markwardt registered a kill and ace on back-to-back plays, as the Falcons evened the score at seven. The Hokies pushed its advantage out to three (13-10), but Keith tallied a pair of kills during a 4-0 Air Force run that saw the Falcons earn their first lead of the match (14-13). Another Keith kill, as well as a score from Robertson, pushed the Air Force lead to two (17-15), while a kill by Messenger put down a kill to give the Falcons a one-point lead (19-18). That was the closest Air Force would come in the second set, as Virginia Tech scored the final seven points to win 25-19.

Keith opened the scoring with a kill, while the teams traded the next nine points to tie the set at five. Virginia Tech broke the back-and-forth play to go up 9-6, but Air Force roared back, scoring eight of the next nine points to take a four-point lead (14-10). Juarez recorded five kills during the Falcons' run, while Keith (two) and Messenger (one) combined for the other three. Ahlers and Robertson added scores to keep Air Force in the lead (17-14), while Keith accounted for another three-kills-in-four-points stretch (21-19). The Falcons continued to hold a two-point lead after a kill by Juarez (22-20), while Messenger tallied Air Force's final three kills to secure the Falcons' 25-23 victory.

Air Force took a quick 3-1 lead behind kills from Ahlers and Keith, while another Keith kill and the Juarez/Robertson block pushed the Falcons' lead to three (6-3). Air Force maintained a three-point lead (9-6) following kills from Keith, Juarez and Markwardt, but Virginia Tech scored four-straight points to take the 10-9 lead. Galloway and Keith added kills, as Air Force retook its three-point advantage (15-12) on a service ace by junior Jordan Daniels. The Hokies tied the set at 16 and took the lead on the ensuing point, while Juarez put down a kill to bring the Falcons within one (17-18). The sophomore added another score at the 18-19 mark, but Virginia Tech scored six of the final nine points to earn the 25-22 victory.

Following the match, Keith was named to the all-tournament team of the Amy Svoboda Memorial Classic, joining Virginia Tech's Talyn Jackson and Cera Powell, Loyola Chicago's Taylor Venuto and Sarah Murczek, and UC Irvine's Abby Marjama. The Hokies claimed the ASMC title with a perfect 3-0 record.

Air Force remains at the Academy next week, when it cohosts the Thin Air Challenge with the University of Denver. The Falcons will host their counterparts from Denver on Thursday, Sept. 19, before welcoming Montana (Sept. 20) and Santa Clara (Sept. 21) to Cadet East Gym for 6:30 p.m. (MT) matches.

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