Aug. 30, 2002
The George Mason women's volleyball team split its two matches in the opening rounds Friday of the Doubletree/Brion's Grille/Patriot Invitational at the John Linn Memorial Gymnasium.
George Mason defeated Rice, 3-2 (30-24, 30-27, 20-30, 30-32, 15-12), in its first match of the day, but 14th-ranked Northern Iowa handed the Patriots a 3-0 (30-20, 30-12, 30-25) loss in the final match of the day.
Each of the other first-round matches resulted in three-game sweeps. Georgia Tech defeated Villanova, 3-0 (30-25, 30-18, 30-15), and Rice, 3-0 (30-23, 30-21, 30-16), while Northern Iowa defeated Villanova, 3-0 (30-20, 30-22, 30-16).
Against Rice, George Mason (1-1) won the first two games before the Owls (0-2) rallied to win the next two games and force a deciding fifth contest, in which the Patriots jumped to an early lead and held on for the victory. Junior Aline Pereira, the 2001 Colonial Athletic Association Player of the Year, led George Mason with 28 kills and added 14 digs, while junior libero Shelbylynn McBride paced the Patriots with 23 digs and junior Milena Racic added 18 kills. Freshman Kristina Hoban led Rice with 14 kills and sophomore Lindsey Carter added 13 kills, while junior Rebekah Neal and freshman Judy Jia each had 14 digs for the Owls.
Northern Iowa (3-1), nationally ranked by the American Volleyball Coaches Association, took it to the Patriots in the final match of the evening. After scoring a 10-point victory in the first game, the Panthers ran away from George Mason in the second game as they hit .652 to .000 for the Patriots. Mason rallied and held a 20-17 lead in the third game before Northern Iowa pulled away to clinch the match. Junior Molly O'Brien led the Panthers with 19 kills and senior Kim Kester added 12, while Pereira paced the Patriots with 17 kills and freshman Natalia Porosa added 11.
Georgia Tech (2-0) opened the tournament by easily dispatching Villanova (0-2) in three games. Sophomore Lynette Moster led the Yellow Jackets with 17 kills and eight digs, while junior Alexandra Preiss added 12 kills. Senior Leah Mathews paced the Wildcats with six kills.
Villanova played better against Northern Iowa, but the result was the same. O'Brien led Northern Iowa with 12 kills and junior Michelle Burvee added 10, and Burvee and sophomore Shari Vermeer each had four blocks. Freshman Megan Abbott paced the Wildcats with 11 kills.
Georgia Tech picked up its second sweep of the day against Rice, winning each game by a larger margin. Moster again paced the Yellow Jackets with 12 kills and added 14 digs, while sophomore Lauren Sauer had 10 kills. For the Owls, freshman Elizabeth Tomasovic led with seven kills.
The tournament continues Saturday with five more matches, as Villanova meets Rice at noon, Georgia Tech faces Northern Iowa at 2 p.m., George Mason squares off with Villanova at 4 p.m., Northern Iowa matches up with Rice at 6 p.m. and Mason concludes the tournament against Georgia Tech at 8 p.m.
Tournament Results
Georgia Tech def. Villanova, 3-0 (30-25, 30-18, 30-15)
George Mason def. Rice, 3-2 (30-24, 30-27, 20-30, 30-32, 15-12)
Northern Iowa def. Villanova, 3-0 (30-20, 30-22, 30-16)
Georgia Tech def. Rice, 3-0 (30-23, 30-21, 30-16)
Northern Iowa def. George Mason, 3-0 (30-20, 30-12, 30-25)
