The Virginia Wesleyan University women's volleyball team (32-3, 11-0 ODAC) fell to Berry 3-1 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, losing 29-31, 21-25, 25-13, and 24-26.
Hannah Smith led the team with 16 kills, 13 digs, three block assists, and one service ace.
Brianna Clay had 10 kills with a .450 hitting percentage, three digs, two block assists, and two service aces.
Breana Brooks had nine kills with a .353 hitting percentage, two block assists, and one dig.
The Marlins started well to start the match, jumping out to a 3-1 lead, but Berry came back and took a 5-3 lead. VWU rallied to bring the score to 7-7, and went on a 4-2 run to take an 11-9 lead. The Marlins held a two-point lead until VWU went on a 4-0 run to take a 19-14 lead midway through the set. The Vikings countered with a 6-2 run to bring the score to 22-20 to force a Marlins timeout, and then went on a 4-1 run to take a 24-23 lead. Virginia Wesleyan responded with a 3-1 run to lead 26-25, but Berry was able to claw back in the set and won set one 31-29.
Berry kept their momentum from set one and jumped out to a 4-1 lead. However, VWU responded with a 7-1 run to take an 8-5 lead. The Vikings countered with a 4-0 run to lead 9-8, but again the Marlins bounced back with a 3-1 run to lead 11-10. Berry regained the momentum, going on a 5-1 run to lead 15-12, and VWU rallied with a 3-0 run to tie the set at 15-15. The Vikings rallied and outscored the Marlins 8-4 to hold a 23-19 lead, forcing a VWU timeout. Coming out of the timeout, the Marlins went on a 2-1 run to bring the score back to 24-21 to force a Berry timeout, but Berry scored the next point and took set two 25-21.
In the third set, the Vikings held a narrow 3-2 lead early, but the Marlins responded with a 3-0 run to lead 5-3. The two teams traded points until Virginia Wesleyan went on a 5-1 run to lead 13-7. However, Berry recovered with a 4-1 run to bring the score to 14-11. The Marlins kept up the pressure and outscored Berry 11-2 to win the third set 25-13.
In the fourth set, the Vikings built a 5-2 lead early in the set, but the Marlins fought back with a 6-3 run to tie the set at 8-8. Both teams were neck-and-neck over the next 14 points, being tied at 15 all, until Virginia Wesleyan went on a 3-1 run to take an 18-16 lead, forcing a Berry timeout. After the timeout, the Vikings rallied and outscored the Marlins 4-2 to tie the set at 20-20. VWU went on a 3-1 run to lead 23-21, but Berry never gave up and outscored the Marlins 5-1 to win the set 26-24.
