WILLIAMSBURG, Va. - Junior Lana Zonjic and freshman Meredith Bush each had eight
kills to pace the George Mason women's volleyball team, but the William &
Mary Tribe proved too strong as they swept the Patriots on Saturday night at
Kaplan Arena in Colonial Athletic Association play. Set scores were 25-10,
27-25, 25-22.
Mason dropped to 4-18 overall and 2-7 in conference after
their final road match of the season, while the Tribe improved to 5-4 in CAA
play and 13-10 overall.
Senior Lauren Goodell registered a double-double with 24
assists and 10 digs while freshman libero Bernetta Moore led all players with
13 digs. W&M's Paulette Grand Pre led all scorers with 11 kills to
highlight the Tribe offense.
Mason led 6-5 in the first set but the Tribe pieced together
a pair of impressive runs. They used a 9-2 run to wake a 14-8 lead, and after a
kill by Price, W&M closed out the set on an 11-1 run to take the early
advantage.
The second set was much closer, featuring seven ties and
five lead changes. Mason opened strong on a 8-2 run, but the Tribe worked their
way back into the match and tied the score at 19. From there, the lead would
change hands five more times. Mason had the first set point opportunity at
24-23, but a Grand Pre kill tied the score. Bush staved off set point with her
kill on a feed from Goodell to tie it at 25, but a Patriots error and a Dessi Koleva
kill put the Tribe up two sets to none heading into the intermission.
Three points would be the largest difference for most of the
third set. W&M led 17-14 but three straight points by the Patriots knotted
the score. The Tribe answered with a 5-1 run, and the Patriots got as close as
24-22 before a Alexandria Ciaccio kill ended the match.
Mason will close out the regular season with a three-match
homestand, beginning next Friday night as the Patriots host rival James
Madison. First serve at the RAC is set for 7 p.m., and it will be the team's
annual "Dig Pink" match to raise awareness for breast cancer research.