After Thursday's 3-0 victory, the ACC might be paying more attention.
"We wanted to win in three games to show the conference that we're ready," outside hitter Nicole Reis said. "We were on our home court, and we just played a really good match."
The Tar Heels set the tone for the match early in the first game, winning five straight points and nine out of 11 to take a 17-9 lead. Middle hitter Katie Wright had three key kills to get that streak started, and Reis had three of her game-high 13 kills during the run.
UNC faced its only real test at the start of the second game. Virginia jumped out to a 15-7 lead, but the Tar Heels slowly came back, getting the score to 16-19.
They then cruised behind Melissa Higgins' serve and would go on to win 14 of the last 17 points to take the game.
"We had a passing breakdown in the second game," UNC coach Joe Sagula said. "Then our serving gave us momentum, and we started making more shots."
After storming back in game two, the Tar Heels dominated the third. Middle hitter Holly Straus ignited the crowd with six powerful kills, and outside hitter Laura Greene had six of her game-high 15 digs to pace UNC's defense. Reis made two diving digs on one point to give UNC a 22-10 lead. Five points later, she again dove across the floor, barely keeping the ball alive for the Tar Heels. Malaika Underwood would soon cap the victory with a kill.
"Malaika was doing a lot of different things out there," Sagula said. "She's really the unsung hero of the team. She does all the little things."
Underwood split time at setter with Eve Rackham, who provided the Tar Heels a boost off the bench with 18 sets.
