WHO: Women's Volleyball at Duquesne
WHERE: Pittsburgh, Pa.
FINAL SCORE: Duquesne 3, Mason 2
KEY PLAYERS: Morghan Martin – 18 kills, two serve aces; Caitlyn Hipsher – 45 assists

Pittsburgh, Pa. – George Mason University's women's volleyball team fought back twice from being a set down, but could not produce the final blow and dropped the decisive fifth set in its visit to Duquesne on Friday night.  

MATCH NOTES
-Senior outside hitter Morghan Martin led Mason with 18 kills, but two more Patriots finished in double digits over the course of the 2:11-hour thriller – redshirt senior Lola Owokoniran with 13 kills and team-best .333 attack percentage and junior Tiffany Clarke with 13 kills.

-Junior setter Caitlyn Hipsher provided 45 of the Patriots' 50 assists, while senior libero Jelena Cobanovic had team-high 21 digs; Martin (12 digs) and freshman libero Erica Partridge (10 digs) also finished in double digits.

-Sophomore Molly Davet led the Dukes with 21 kills, followed by junior Lacey Levers with 10 kills.

-The five-set match gave Duquesne's senior setter Mary Henry the opportunity to register 53 assists and break the previous single-match record (51 assists) set in 2003.

-Mason enjoyed a better start to the match and took a 8-4 lead, but a turn of momentum allowed the Dukes to go on a run and take an 11-9 lead.

-Duquesne's lead grew to five at 15-10 and although the Patriots came within two twice – at 16-14 and 21-19 – the Dukes capitalized on a service error by Mason to close the first set at 25-21.

-After beginning the second set with a 5-1 run, the Patriots again could not hold the lead and Duquesne came back on level terms at 8.

-With both teams still tied at 11 all, this time it was Mason who made a serious push toward winning the set with a 7-1 run.

-Four consecutive points in the closing stage of the second set allowed the Dukes to come within one at 21-20, but behind back-to-back kills from Martin followed by a service ace by another senior, Cobanovic, the Patriots regained their composure and comfortably closed the set 25-21.

-Duquesne took control of the third set from the very first serve, but Mason were handling the pressure well until a 7-2 run gave the Dukes a serious 18-11 advantage.

-The Patriots came within five at 20-15 but managed to win only one of the following six points and dropped the third set 25-16.

-Mason took a 6-3 lead early in the fourth set, but that was the last time either team led by that much in what was the closest set of the match.

-11 tied scores and three lead changes later, the two team entered the decisive portion of the set all square at 20.

-Thanks to consecutive attack errors by the Dukes on the next two plays, the Patriots pulled ahead by two points, a fine but substantial advantage that they held on – even increased – to win a tie-breaker with a 25-22 win in the fourth set.

-Duquesne led by as many as four in the course of the fifth set and although Mason forced a timeout by the Dukes when they came within one at 10-9, that was as close as they came to their second conference win this season and instead Duquesne grabbed their fourth by outscoring the Patriots 5-1 for the remainder of the set and match.

STAT BREAKDOWN
-Duquesne had the slightest of advantage in aces, 7-6.

-Mason were second best in the match by a big margin when it comes to digging, 80-60.

-Martin had the only solo block in the match to her name, while the Patriots also had two block assists more than their opponent, 20-18.

POST-MATCH QUOTES

"We are still growing as a team. We are learning how to fight. That is a part one. Now we are building upon that as we learn to be consistent with what we give to each moment. Every contact, in every point, is just as important as the last." - Mason head coach Jackie Simpson

NEXT ON THE PITCH
-Mason has a day off before they return to the court for a visit to La Salle in Philadelphia, Pa. at 1 p.m. on Sunday afternoon.