Nov. 9, 2002
HEMPSTEAD, NY...Aline Pereira had a match-high 35 kills and a .459 hitting percentage to lead George Mason University to a four-game victory over Hofstra University on Saturday evening at the Physical Fitness Center. Game scores were 35-33, 30-28, 22-30, 30-28.
Hofstra, who saw their eight-match winning streak come to an end, falls to 22-5 and 12-2 in Colonial Athletic Association (CAA). George Mason, meanwhile, improves to 20-7 and 14-2 in the CAA.
It was the final regular-season match for the Patriots, who will now wait out this week's league games to see how the final conference standings will shape up. The standings will be used to determine seeding at the conference tournament, which will be held Nov. 22-24 at James Madison. Mason will finish no worse than second, but would win the regular season title if Hofstra would drop one of its remaining two matches.
On Saturday, the first game turned out to a be a classic as it featured nine tie scores and three lead changes. The Patriots scored the game's first four points and also held a 8-2 advantage before the Flying Dutchwomen roared back and tied the score at nine. Neither team would hold a lead larger than four the remainder of the first game, as Hofstra overcame a late 25-21 deficit to even the score at 29. George Mason was not to be denied though, and back-to-back kills from Amy Falk and Pereira gave the Patriots the game one victory, 35-33. Pereira had nine kills in the first game, while senior outside hitter Stefanie Rewitz knocked down seven kills for the Flying Dutchwomen.
Hofstra once again trailed early in the second game, including falling behind 17-12 before mounting a 12-8 run to close within one at 25-24. The Flying Dutchwomen were unable to get over the hump though, and the Patriots won the game with a kill from Pereira. Natalia Porosa tallied nine kills on 15 attempts in the game to lead George Mason to the 30-28 win.
The Flying Dutchwomen jumped out to an early 4-3 lead in the third game and never trailed from that point on as they cruised to the 30-22 victory. A 12-6 run turned the 4-3 advantage into a 16-9 lead, with Moran and Nick each picking up two kills during the run. Hofstra closed the game with a 3-0 run as back-to-back attack errors by the Patriots and a kill from Rewitz allowed the Flying Dutchwomen to stay in the match.
George Mason never trailed in the final game, jumping out to a 4-0 lead before Hofstra scored their first point of the game on a service error by the Patriots. Hofstra closed within one on two occasions late in the game, but the Patriots were not to be denied as they avenged a four-game loss to Hofstra on October 5.
In addition to Pereira's strong offensive performance, the Patriots got 18 kills from Porosa and 11 from Shelbylynn McBride. McBride finished the game with a double-double by ading 20 digs. Jesica Umansky also had a double-double, with 59 assists and 19 digs.
