Nov. 4, 2005

Box Score

The George Mason women's volleyball team played terrific defense on Friday night at John Linn Memorial Gymnasium, out-blocking Virginia Commonwealth, 6-4, while matching them in digs, with 60 to VCU's 61. Unfortunately, the offense wasn't able to keep pace with the Rams, as VCU out-hit Mason .246-.088. That strong offensive showing by VCU allowed the Rams to take a 30-17, 30-18, 30-19 win over the Patriots in Colonial Athletic Association action.

The Rams had at least 16 kills in each of the three games and hit .190 or better in all three. The Patriots managed just 11 kills in their best game and were held to just six in their worst. Virginia Commonwealth's Ana Luiza De Borja led all players with a .444 hitting percentage and 14 kills. Her teammate Cat Juson had a match-high 42 assists and Ludmila Francescatto, Elisa Kuehnel, Renata Salvatori and Jaclyn Orlando all had seven or more kills for the Rams.

Mason had seven kills from each of their middle hitters, Chantal Bodkin-Clarke and Janelle Wilson, but neither managed to hit better than .190. Jaqueline Kohler was held to a career-low two kills. Her previous career low was four, set last year in the CAA Tournament vs. Towson and matched earlier this year against Georgia State. Zulma Rojas had 19 digs, as did VCU's Griselle Lopez Pereira.

The Patriots (4-18, 1-14) started the match well, grabbing an early 8-6 lead. But VCU (17-10, 9-6) responded by winning 12 of the next 14 points to go ahead 18-10. The Rams added a 5-0 run later in the game to account for the 13-point margin. In the second game, the Patriots fell behind early and never got into the match, trailing by as much as 15 (23-8) before a late rally made it a bit more respectable. The final game saw Mason very much alive, trailing just 15-12, but VCU won eight straight points to make it 23-12 and only by trading points over the final 14 points did Mason manage its closest game of the match.

The Patriots return to action on Saturday when they host William & Mary at 7 p.m. in their final home match of the season. It will be Senior Night for Lindsay Angelo, Niki Bernardes, Julie Flanders, Natalia Porosa and Zulma Rojas. The Patriots will be looking to snap their 10-match losing streak, the longest losing streak a Mason women's volleyball team has suffered since opening the 1998 season with 11 straight losses.