Flames’ DI and DII men’s volleyball teams eliminated by Hokies on home courts in ECVA South Championships

Saturday, March 7

Lynchburg, VA

8:30 AM

Liberty University Club Sports

ECVA South Championships

ECVA South Division I Men's Volleyball Championships

Liberty's Division I men's volleyball team rallied from a set down to force Virginia Tech to three sets in the quarterfinals before falling, 25-18, 22-25, 15-13, Saturday at the LaHaye Multipurpose Center. (Photos by Ted Allen)

Flames’ DI and DII men’s volleyball teams eliminated by Hokies on home courts in ECVA South Championships

3/7/2026 11:22:00 PM | Men's Volleyball

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Liberty’s DI squad finished 2-2 after dropping its opening match to Appalachian State, while its DII team narrowly missed qualifying for the March 21 East Coast Championships.

Gallery: (3-7-2026) Men's volleyball in ECVA South tourney

Momentum swings, feverish spikes, and acrobatic digs make volleyball a topsy-turvy sport to watch or play, as was on display all day long in Saturday's ECVA South Championships at the LaHaye Multipurpose Center and Recreation & Fitness Center courts. That's where Liberty University's Division I and II men's volleyball teams were eliminated by Virginia Tech's A and B teams in the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds of their respective tournaments.

Seeded first in its pool, Liberty's DI squad suffered a 25-20, 25-21 setback against Appalachian State University in the first match of the day before recovering to win its last two matches in pool play — over the College of William & Mary, 25-16, 25-15, and VCU 25-19, 25-22.

That set up a quarterfinal showdown with Virginia Tech, which prevailed 25-18, 22-25, 15-13, to send the Flames to an early exit on their home floor.

"We just didn't have the focus this morning (against Appalachian State) and we suffered the consequences," Liberty senior opposite hitter Zach Lamoureux said of the quarterfinal showdown between the 15th-ranked Flames and No. 9 Hokies.

"The two best teams faced off in the quarterfinals," Liberty interim Head Coach Bryan Rigg added. "It's a long, bitter rivalry. It was good though. Everything's meant to be. To go three games against them, that's a big deal. I told the guys, 'If you can do that with them, you can do that against anybody.'"

The Flames had eliminated Virginia Tech in the semifinals of the ECVA South Play Date at JMU two weeks ago to secure its bid to the East Coast Championships. The Hokies traveled to California last weekend and upset No. 1 Utah Valley University and No. 5 UC-Irvine as well as San Diego State, without dropping a single set.

"They should be ranked No. 1 in the nation when the next poll comes out (March 13)," Lamoureux said. "Only losing by two points to what objectively will be the No. 1 seed in the country, we're not worried about it at all."

He said the Flames will use the early exit as motivation for the next time they meet Virginia Tech, possibly in the March 21 East Coast Championships hosted by the University of Maryland in College Park, Md.

"If we'd had beaten them today, they wouldn't have gone to East Coast Championships," Lamoureux said. "Even though we went out early, we should still have a good standing … to get into a pretty good pool up there (at Maryland). We're excited to go."

"East Coast should be really good for us to prepare for nationals," Rigg added. "Maryland is ranked higher than us, as is Georgia Tech, but I don't think they're nearly as good as Virginia Tech."

Lamoureux said the Flames may not have started their postseason on the best foot, but they are determined to take their game to the next level in two weeks and again at the April 2-4 NCVF Division I National Championships in Kansas City, Mo.

"We don't want to peak right now," Lamoureux said. "We'd like to peak more toward nationals because obviously that's all that really matters at the end of this season. That's where we're looking to play our best volleyball. For our home tournament and conference championships, we would have liked to have come away with that win, or at least get into the finals, but unfortunate draw in the pool. I could have been a little bit more proficient on the right side. That was about the only area we were lacking in."

Liberty's Division II team narrowly missed advancing to the ECVA South Championships final, which would have qualified it for the East Coast Championships. The Flames won their pool by dominating Western Carolina University, 25-17, 25-13, and sweeping VCU, 25-23, 25-17 before rallying to defeat top-seeded JMU, 24-26, 28-26, 15-13.

Then in playoffs, the Flames swept Virginia Tech's C team, 25-21, 25-22, in the quarterfinals before bowing out against the Hokies' B squad, 22-25, 25-22, 15-13.

They will still have the opportunity to play at the NCVF Division III National Championships in Kansas City, but they will not likely be seeded well and will have to stage some upsets to get out of their pool and advance to the gold or silver bracket playoffs.

By Ted Allen/Staff Writer