The Miami Hurricanes volleyball team took on Wake Forest on a Friday night at the Freeman Indoor Stadium in Coral Gables.
Coming off a 1-1 split against FSU, including a sweep against the Seminoles on Sunday, Sept. 27, the Canes were looking to take back-to-back wins at home.
Miami did just that, defeating the Demon Deacons 3-1, with Ruth Martinez’s 21 digs leading the way.
The first set started off competitive for both teams, and the score was tied twice within the first few moments of the game.
Martinez, Ariana Rodriguez and Logan Wiley came out the game strong and ready to take over the first set. The Canes were leading 12-11 when they challenged a call, followed by a timeout.
UM continued to build its lead and was up 15-12.
From there, the Hurricanes dominated the first set, led by Martinez, who had six kills, one dig and one block. Up 24-17, Rodriguez set up Martinez with a set-clinching kill, giving Miami a first set victory.
The second set started off strong for UM with one kill from Martinez, but Wake Forest was ready to answer back with three kills led by Dhru Lalaij and one dig by Becca Bellows.
The score was tied at 5-5, but Wake Forest was leading throughout the second set, led by former Cane Amina N’diaye, who had six kills, three digs and one block.
Yet, Miami was able to catch up and was only three points behind. UM, hanging around, found its groove and tied the game at 19 a piece, forcing Wake to call timeout. Following a Martinez kill, the Canes took their first lead of the set, eventually being up 21-19.
The score got tied again at 23-23 and 24-24 until Denitsa Angelova was blocked by Wake, giving the Deacons a 25-24 lead.
The Canes answered back with a kill to tie the score at 25-25, followed by two-straight kills to win the second set 27-25.
The third set started hot for Wake Forest, and it was leading 8-2 within the first few moments of the set. UM seemed to be struggling, but it tried to find a way to catch up on the scoreboard.
However, the Hurricanes were able to put together a few kills led by Rodriguez, who had two kills and eight digs, followed by Asia Harvey, who had six kills and five digs throughout the game.
The Hurricanes were only four points behind and seemed to gain their momentum back for the rest of the set.
Fans were on their feet hoping the Canes would win the third set, but Wake Forest held on at the end and won 25-23.
The fourth set started off great for Miami, led by Martinez and Rodriguez once again. From there, the Canes were soaring up the scoreboard.
Rodriguez was serving at a high speed, and there wasn’t much action from Wake Forest to answer back.
Martinez and Rodriguez set the tone for the game, with Martinez recording 19 kills and Rodriguez recording nine digs, along with Harvey, who had 10 kills, five digs and one block.
This was the best set in the game as the Canes were leading 18-7, their biggest lead of the game. The Canes stayed in control for the remaining set and finished with a 25-14 win after a great kill from Wiley to seal the victory.
Miami will remain at home Sunday to play NC State, followed by Clemson on Oct. 9.