CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The University of North Florida volleyball team fell to the Atlantic Coast Conference's University of Virginia, 3-0 on Friday afternoon during the first day of action at the 20th Annual Holiday Inn Jefferson Cup Invitational at Memorial Gym in Charlottesville, Va.

“This is why we came to this tournament, to face a team that consistently competes against top tier volleyball programs,” said head coach Kevin Campbell. “I thought we took steps forward in many areas including serve receive, communication and defense. Our general team dynamic was better.”

Sophomore outside hitter Paige Pridgeon led the Ospreys (0-4) with 11 kills and 12 digs, recording her third double-double of the early season. Senior outside hitter Jessica Catelano added six kills while freshman setter Britt Claessens posted 22 assists

The Cavaliers (4-0) were led by Simone Asque with 11 kills. Emily Rottman and Jessica O'Shoney had seven kills each. Rottman also led on the defensive side with eight digs. Beth Wildermuth and Rachel Gray had 16 and 13 assists, respectively.

The Ospreys fell behind early in the first set as the Cavaliers jumped out to a 13-3 lead behind an eight serve run by Cushman. UVA maintained the lead during the rest of the set to win, 25-13 and take a 1-0 lead in the match.

In the second set, the Ospreys kept the score close early in the set with the Cavaliers taking 9-6 lead. UNF kept the score close over the next several rallies, but the Cavaliers responded with a 6-1 run to take a 20-10 lead. UVA claimed the second set, 25-14 to take the 2-0 match lead.

UNF and UVA traded points to open the third set, but UVA went on a run to take an 11-5 lead. The Cavaliers held on to the lead through the remainder of the set for a 25-13 win that claimed the match.

The Ospreys will be back in action later today when they face George Washington at 4:30 p.m. in Memorial Gym.