WHO: Women's Volleyball at VCU
WHERE: Siegel Center, Richmond, Va.
FINAL SCORE: VCU 3, Mason 0
KEY PLAYERS: Jordan Glass – 11 kills (match-high), 1 service ace; Catie Espinoza – 9 digs, 1 service ace; Kelly Schaller – 12 assists

RICHMOND, Va. – Junior outside hitter Jordan Glass matched her 11-kill performance at VCU from just over a year ago, but this time it was the Rams who triumphed at Siegel Center by defeating George Mason University's women's volleyball team in straight sets.

MATCH NOTES

-Glass came off the bench to record the match-best offensive performance on .292 hitting. Another junior, setter Kelly Schaller, was another player called upon by head coach Jackie Simpson-Kirr to enter the match from the bench who recorded double digits – 12 assists. VCU's strong offensive performance also snapped Mason libero Catie Espinoza's four-match double-digit streak, limiting the sophomore to nine digs, which was nevertheless best for the Patriots.

-Two of the Rams' most consistent players this season, Alica Kandler and Julia Adler, shared the bragging rights in offense with 10 kills apiece, while libero Rebekah Strange led VCU with eight digs.

-Freshman outside hitter Bailey Williams gave Mason its first two leads in the opening set – with a service ace for 3-2 and with a kill for 7-6. The Patriots also had two two-point leads in the set, lastly at 9-7 due to an attack error Vicky Giommarini. However, Mason could not hold the momentum for long and it was all VCU from that point on as the Rams outscored their opponents 18-5 to close the set in a convincing manner, 25-14.  

-Mason enjoyed an even better start to the second set and as a kill by freshman outside hitter Mikala Wells and an attack error by Jasmin Sneed made the Patriots' lead three at 10-7 and 13-10, respectively. After the latter situation, Sneed compensated her teammates with good serving that sparked a 4-0 VCU run and forced Simpson-Kirr to call her first timeout of the set. The break helped the Patriots kill the Rams' momentum and the next few minutes were characterized by seesaw scoring before VCU managed to pull away by three with an ace by Tyler Sroufe, 21-18. The home team's first set point came a few plays later at 24-20, following a kill by Kandler. An error by Adler and a kill by Glass got Mason within two at 24-22, but Adler corrected her error from earlier just in time as the Rams took the second set 25-22.

-After having the upper hand for the majority of the single-digit portion of the third set, Mason entered double digits with a two-point lead after a kill by Wells made the score 11-9. This advantage was quickly erased and the tables turned just as quickly after big plays from VCU's Tori Baldwin, who assisted Adler for a block and then picked up a kill to put the Rams ahead by two, 14-12. After that Glass got Mason within a single point on two occasions, but VCU went on another impressive 10-2 run to win the set at 25-16, complete the sweep, and improve to 3-1 in conference play.

POST-MATCH QUOTES

“Jordan and Kendal [Hall] did a great job coming in off the bench, they were the spark that brought our team back in the second set.

“Right now we need to find some consistency, we have moments of brilliance and moments of carelessness. When we take care of the ball, we win points, it's that simple.” – Mason's head coach Jackie Simpson-Kirr

 STAT BREAKDOWN

-VCU had two players hit above .400 and no one in the negative to finish the match with a .302 mark as a team, while Glass' strong night and freshman middle blocker Katrina Santos' .500 helped Mason only to a .111 team hitting performance.

-There was a small consolation for the Patriots in the defeat, which came on the defensive end – Mason outdug its in-state rival 29-28.

-The Rams dominated the net on Friday and outblocked their former Colonial Athletic Association opponent 10-3.

NEXT ON THE COURT

Mason will head further south to visit Davidson in another A-10 clash. First serve in Glass' home state is at 1 p.m. on Sunday.