VILLANOVA, Pa. – Strong serving, along with timely blocking and more efficient hitting as the match went on, allowed Old Dominion volleyball to cap off the Villanova Classic with a 3-1 win over the host Wildcats on Sunday afternoon at Jake Nevin Field House.
“Our team found another gear today,” said ODU Head Coach Fred Chao. “We continued our serving pressure from yesterday and added more defense. We scrapped better and converted those points to keep the pressure on.”
Strong outings by both Ashlynn Belcher and Elisa Maggi helped the pair earn spots on the All-Tournament Team. Belcher finished one assist shy of her career high with 39 assists against the Wildcats as the Monarchs hit for .265 in the match. Her tournament totals included 99 assists (7.07 per set), two kills, four service aces, 25 digs and one block.
For Maggi, she set a new career high on Sunday with five aces. The sophomore from Pavia, Italy scored double-digit kills in all three matches at the Classic, finishing with 37 (2.64 per set) for the weekend. Her other totals included two assists, eight aces, nine digs and four blocks.
The Monarchs are now 5-2, marking the best start to a season in program history.
ODU 3, Villanova 1
ODU led 5-3 early in the first set, but the Wildcats (3-3) strung together a 5-0 run and never looked back. A kill by Emma Schelah and a Villanova attack error allowed ODU to pull to within a point at 11-10, but the home team won eight of the next nine points and took the set, 25-16.
The Monarchs built a 6-2 advantage in the second set and back-to-back kills by Maggi helped grow that lead to 10-4. Later in the set, she served consecutive aces to make it a double-digit lead at 18-8. A couple of block assists by Myah Conway and LeeAnne Lowery and a solo block by Lowery put the set out of reach at 24-9. Villanova won a couple of points to delay the inevitable as Conway put away a ball from Belcher to score the set point at 25-11.
The third set proved to be the closest of the match with 18 ties. Alice Munari, Maggi, Conway and Schelah scored four-straight kills to put ODU ahead 21-17, but the Wildcats refused to go away. After a service error evened the set at 24-24, Munari and Maggi finally put away the hosts with a pair of kills.
ODU jumped out 9-4 to start the fourth set. Villanova was able to get to within 10-9, but four Conway kills and two more Maggi services aces highlighted a 7-0 run as the Monarchs pulled away, 17-9. Belcher then sealed the victory with an ace to earn the match point at 25-18.
Conway had a solid match on both sides of the net, scoring a team-high 17 kills with six block assists. Maggi had 13 kills to go along with her five aces, Munari turned in nine kills and eight digs, and Lowery chipped in eight kills with seven blocks, two of them solo. Belcher registered 11 digs for her second double-double of the season, Schelah recorded four blocks, Kate Kilpatrick tallied 12 digs and Adrienne Peji matched Belcher with 11 digs.
The Monarchs hit just .088 in the first set, but combined for a .227 clip in the second. ODU then swung for a .390 hitting percentage in the third set and a .308 mark in the fourth. ODU edged Villanova in points (73-61), kills (52-43), blocks (11-8), assists (47-37) and digs (56-53). Both teams served 11 aces.
Sunday’s match marked the first-ever meeting between the two programs.
“Everyone work hard to do their jobs and we were more alert as the rallies progressed. I’m proud of our efforts this weekend and we deserved the win today,” added Chao.
2024 Villanova Classic All-Tournament Team
Lauren Link, Loyola
Ashlynn Belcher, ODU
Elisa Maggi, ODU
Sydney Bold, Princeton
Erin McNair, Princeton
Campbell McKinnon, Villanova
Alyssa Nelson, Villanova
Up Next
ODU will be in Fairfax, Virginia this Thursday through Saturday, Sept. 12-14 to play in the George Mason Invite. The Monarchs will open the tournament against the host Patriots on Thursday at 6 p.m. The team will then face Quinnipiac at 4 p.m. on Friday and Navy at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday.