Dec. 4, 2009
Box Score
Post-Match Press Conference Video
NCAA Tournament Video Blog Wrapup
AMES, Iowa - The George Mason women's volleyball team faced a tough home-court advantage for seventh-seeded Iowa State, and the Cyclones held off the Patriots in straight sets (25-22, 25-13, 25-19) to eliminate Mason in the first round of the 2009 NCAA Tournament before 2,564 fans at Hilton Coliseum.
Sophomores Kelsey Bohman and Noelle Fanella led the way for the Patriots with each contributing seven kills, while freshman Koala Matsuoka had 14 digs and senior Laura Turner posted a game-high six total blocks. Debbie Stadick recorded 11 kills to lead all players, while ISU's Ashley Mass's 18 digs and Kaylee Mann's 39 assists were match-highs.
Iowa State opened with three of the first four points, but it was close early on. Tied at 6, a 6-1 run by the Cyclones made it 12-7. The Patriots pulled back to within two at 13-11, and ISU had a lead as large as 19-13, before Mason mounted another charge, rattling off five in a row and forcing an Iowa State timeout in the process. The Patriots could not tie it up though, and the Cyclones took a 23-19 lead. Three straight Mason points again shaved the deficit to one point, but ISU had a kill from Henson and on their first set point opportunity, an ace by Mass put the first set in the hands of the host.
Both teams' attacks struggled in the first set, with ISU out-hitting Mason by a .113-to-.021 margin. The Cyclones had four blocks compared to one for the Patriots. Fanella and Bohman each had three kills in the opening set, while Hockaday and Henson each had four.
Another tight start in the second set, with the Cyclones taking an early 4-3 lead. Once again, the Cyclone scoring came in bunches, quickly making it a six-point difference. Mason pulled to within three at 11-8, but a 12-1 run by Iowa State made the Cyclone lead insurmountable. ISU's attack improved to .452 in the second set, while the Patriots' swung .059 in the set. Bohman had three more kills for Mason while Debbie Stadick contributed seven for the Cyclones.
It was another 4-3 start for the teams out of the intermission, with Mason leading 2-1 early on before the Cyclones took over the lead. ISU's largest advantage was seven at 16-9, before Mason cut it to four at 17-13 and then three points at 18-15. ISU pulled away though, using a 5-1 to make it 23-16. Unwilling to give them match point, the Patriots took three straight points from the Cyclones and forced them to call a timeout. However, Iowa State came back and got their 24th point, and then a kill by Stadick secured the victory for the fifth-ranked Cyclones.
Mason finishes its season with a 23-9 record and Friday's match was the final contest for seniors Sam Simmonds, Laura Turner and Rebecca Walter. The Cyclones, meanwhile, will host Wichita State in second-round action Saturday evening at 6:30 p.m.
