WHO: Women's Volleyball vs George Washington
WHERE: RAC Gym, Fairfax, Va.
FINAL SCORE: George Washington 3, Mason 2
KEY PLAYERS: Tiffany Clarke – 16 kills (match-high), 5 blocks, .375 hitting (team-high); Bailey Williams – 9 kills, 15 digs; Sydney Fanoga – 7 kills, 6 blocks (team-high); Catie Espinoza – 23 digs (match-high)

FAIRFAX, Va. – George Mason University's women's volleyball team had a dream start to the Revolutionary Rivalry battle against George Washington on Friday and went into the intermission two sets to the good, but the Colonials showed a much better side following the 10-minute break and won three-straight sets to prevail in the five-set thriller at RAC Gym.

MATCH NOTES

-Mason had two match-high performances on Friday night – senior opposite hitter Tiffany Clarke's 16 kills and sophomore libero Catie Espinoza's 23 digs. Freshman outside hitter Bailey Williams was the third Patriot who had double digits – 15 digs – as she was just a kill shy from a double-double. Junior outside hitter Jordan Glass followed with eight kills, while her classmate, middle blocker Sydney Fanoga, picked up seven kills despite limited offensive opportunities. Defensively, Fanoga racked up team-best six blocks.

-George Washington shared credit both on offense and defense and had two players finish with double-doubles – Aaliya Davidson with 15 kills and 12 digs and Skylar Iott with 11 kills and 15 digs. Chidima Osuchukwu had 12 kills on .375 hitting while Jordan Young contributed double digits defensively with 11 digs.

-Several errors in quick succession by Mason allowed for a four-point lead for George Washington at 12-8 after what has been a competitive start to the opening set and forced head coach Jackie Simpson-Kirr to take her first timeout. Still not pleased by what she saw on the court, the second-season head coach did not hesitate to bring her players back in the huddle soon after with the Colonials still up by four, 16-12. That did the trick for the moment and put an end to GW's momentum as the visitors began committing more and more errors while winning only one of the following nine points – a service error by a Patriot – to result in Mason's largest lead of the set – 20-17. Mason's inconsistency showed in the decisive stages of the set as the Patriots gave up five consecutive points to trail 22-20 before a kill by Glass put an end to the negative run. A service ace by freshman outside hitter Mikala Wells for 23-22 in Mason's favor seemed to tip the balance for the final time in the set because although George Washington tied the score at 23 all coming out of its final timeout, soon after Clarke put Mason a set to the good with a kill for 25-23 after a simply breathtaking rally.

-The second set began with a 4-0 Mason lead thanks to two kills from Williams and good serving from another freshman, defensive specialist Kendal Hall. A kill by Osuchukwu and a block with the help of the senior got the Colonials within two, but that is as close as head coach Amanda Ault's team got to the Patriots, who had a .75 side-out percentage in the set. Consecutive aces by Williams eventually increased Mason's lead to double digits at 22-12 and this was the exact margin by which the Patriots took the set Wells put away her first kill of the match after a breathtaking rally, 25-15.

-In a nail-biting start to the third set in which Mason and George Washington each briefly led by as many as two points, it was Clarke who put Mason in double digits with a kill that cut the Colonials' advantage to 11-10. At that point, nothing indicated what happened next, which was a 10-5 run by George Washington which put the Colonials in pole position to stay in the match with a 21-15 lead, and Davidson made sure that happened with two late kills that closed the set at 25-17.

-An ace by Hall was followed by a block by the freshman duo of Williams and middle blocker Katrina Santos on the way of another 4-0 Mason start. The lead held off until the Patriots entered double digits at 10-6, but then a 5-1 George Washington run followed that reset the race to 25 at 11 all. Soon after, a kill by Osuchukwu gave the Colonials their first lead of the set at 13-12, the first of three one-point leads to be canceled out by a Mason kill. A Patriot attack error allowed GW to capitalize on its fourth opportunity to pull away by two at 17-15, but that did not lead to drastic consequences for Mason because five plays later the Patriots were back in the lead, 19-18. Just like the first set, the closing stage of the fourth set was a test of nerves and composure in which George Washington had the final say as an ace by Iott and a block by Osuchukwu and setter Emily Clemens back-to-back took the match into both teams' second consecutive five-set contest, 25-23.

-Three early kills by Clarke in the fifth set gave Mason a two-point lead which the Patriots retained until the change of net sides at 8-6. It was the senior again who came through offensively to give her team a 9-8 lead in the decisive sets. That, however, was not only Mason's last lead of the match but its last point as well, as good offensive execution Iott and Osuchukwu, as well as the opposite from the Patriots, ended the match on a 7-0 run by George Washington for 15-9. Thus, the Colonials snapped a 10-match losing streak and picked up their first Atlantic 10 Conference win of the season.

STAT BREAKDOWN

-Mason held GW to .097 hitting for the first two sets, but the Colonials combined for .286 hitting in the remaining sets to pull just above .200 on the night. The Patriots' attacking efficiency dipped slightly after the intermission for a .096 mark and 10 fewer digs in the match, 55-45.

-The defensive battle went to the wire as Mason's 66 digs were just one more than the ones George Washington managed. The margin in blocking was the same, but was in favor of the Colonials, 11-10. Osuchukwu led all players on the court with eight blocks.

-Mason was the better-serving of the two teams, managing nine aces in the contest – five more than GW – and committing as many errors, eight fewer than its opponent's.

POST-MATCH QUOTES

“[This was] Another fantastic match for Catie. I am really proud of how she played tonight. Tiff stepped up in big ways for us offensively and as a blocker. We are getting closer day by day. Our focus remains on consistency and togetherness.” – Mason's head coach Jackie Simpson-Kirr

NEXT ON THE COURT

This was Mason's only match of the weekend and the Patriots will return in action on Friday, Oct. 21, when it welcomes Davidson to the RAC. First serve against the Wildcats is 7 p.m.