Michigan
6-1,0-0Big Ten
Virginia
5-2,0-0ACC
Michigan Suffers First Defeat of Season in Five Sets at Virginia
9/12/2025 9:43:00 PM | Volleyball
» Michigan suffered a five-set loss to Virginia, winning the first and third sets.
» Serena Nyambio recorded a team-leading 15 kills, doing so on a match-leading .458 hitting percentage.
» Lydia Johnson tallied 14 kills with just two errors, hitting .414.
» Allison Jacobs and Morgan Burke recorded double-doubles.
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- The University of Michigan volleyball team dropped its first contest of the season to Virginia in five sets (25-19, 22-25, 25-23, 21-25, 11-15) on Friday night (Sept. 12) at the UVA Aquatic and Fitness Center.
After trading the first four sets, Virginia (5-2) got the first point of the fifth set. A kill from Johnson tied it, but the Cavaliers took the next two points. U-M knotted things at three after a kill from Serena Nyambio and a UVA attack error. Virginia got back in front, taking a 5-3 lead, but a kill from Jenna Hanes brought the match within one. However, the Cavaliers held the lead and went on a 4-0 run to push the score to 9-4. The Wolverines attempted a comeback, going on a 5-1 run to bring the score to 10-9 in favor of Virginia -- led by Cymarah Gordon, who tallied two kills and a solo block on the run. The teams traded the next four points, and the Cavaliers closed out the match with the final three points to win 15-11 in the final set.
Michigan (6-1) was led offensively by Nyambio and Lydia Johnson, with the pair collecting double-digit kills and hitting over .400. Nyambio tallied 15 kills on a match-leading .458 hitting percentage while Johnson tallied 14 kills on a .414 hitting percentage. Allison Jacobs also added double-digit kills with 10 and recorded a double-double with 12 digs. Morgan Burke recorded a double-double of her own with 27 assists and 14 digs.
The Wolverines opened the match with a 5-1 run and worked the score to 8-3 before Virginia strung together two points. On the run, four different Wolverines recorded kills, with Johnson leading the way with three. The Cavaliers brought the score to 11-9, but a kill from Nyambio and a UVA attack error kept Michigan in front. The teams traded points until Virginia brought the set to within two again, 17-15, but a 3-0 Michigan run kept the Wolverines in the lead, 19-15. A kill from Hanes started the run before a block assist from Nyambio and Gordon and a kill from Nyambio ended the run. Virginia brought the score to within three, three more times, but a kill from Nyambio and two from Jacobs ended the set with U-M winning 25-19.
The second set was a battle throughout, with seven tie scores, until a three-point UVA run put it ahead 10-7. A kill from Nyambio and an ace from Burke brought the set to a one-point deficit, but UVA got the points right back. U-M tied the match at 12 with two Johnson kills and one from Amalia Simmons. The teams traded the next few points before a 3-0 Michigan run put the Wolverines in front 17-16, with the run including an ace from Jacobs. UVA took back the lead at 18-17, but Michigan got it back at 20-19 with a kill from Simmons. Virginia ended the set on a 6-2 run to win the second set 25-22.
A Nyambio kill opened the third set and U-M held a short lead until UVA tied the match at four and took its first lead of the set at 7-6. The Cavaliers then went on a 7-1 run to take a 14-7 lead. A service error ended the run, and a kill from Ella Demetrician got another point back for U-M. Virginia took the next point, but U-M countered the Cavaliers' run with a 7-0 stretch led by Demetrician from the service line and included two aces and an overpass kill from Nyabmio. The run allowed U-M to take a 16-15 lead, but UVA tied the match at 16. The teams traded the next four points until back-to-back Gordon kills put U-M up 20-18 and forced UVA's second timeout. Out of the timeout, Jacobs recorded an ace and the teams traded the next couple of points until a block assist from Jacobs and Nyambio gave U-M match point at 24-21. UVA took the next two points, but a kill from Nyambio finished off the third set with Michigan winning 25-23.
Virginia got off to a strong lead in the fourth set, jumping out 7-2. A kill from Jacobs ended the run and brought Ellie White to the service line. White led the Wolverines on a 6-0 run to put Michigan in front 8-7. UVA took the lead again quickly at 9-8, but Michigan countered with a 6-1 run to take a 14-10 lead with Gordon tallying two kills on the run. The Cavaliers retook the lead at 16-15, but U-M tied it at 16 and 17. However, U-M was unable to get back in front for the remainder of the set. With the match tied at 17, UVA ended the fourth set on an 8-4 run to force the deciding fifth set.
The Wolverines and Cavaliers will be back in action on Saturday (Sept. 13), wrapping up their series at 11 a.m. inside the UVA Aquatic and Fitness Center.
