WHEN: Friday, Oct. 4 (7 p.m.) | Sunday, Oct. 6 (1 p.m.)
WHERE: Philadelphia, Pa. (Tom Gola Arena) | Pittsburgh, Pa. (Mt. Lebanon HS)
RECORDS: Mason (4-9, 0-1); La Salle (6-7, 1-1); Duquesne (6-9, 0-2)
COVERAGE – LA SALLE: ESPN+
COVERGAE – DUQUESNE: Live Stats |
ESPN+
FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason women's volleyball team continues its three-game road stretch with a pair of matches at La Salle and Duquesne this weekend. The Patriots battle the Explorers on Friday at Tom Gola Arena in Philadelphia, Pa., with first serve scheduled for 7 p.m.
They wrap up the weekend with a 1 p.m. match at Duquesne on Sunday. Due to renovation work at the on-campus UMPC Cooper Fieldhouse, the match will be played at Mt. Lebanon High School.
LAST TIME OUT
The Patriots fell in its conference opener to George Washington on Sept. 28 in Washington, D.C. The Colonials overcame a 2-0 set deficit to take the match in five. Sophomore
ShaLi Niu put down a team-high 19 kills while
Siron Hardy posted a personal-best mark of 18 kills.
Senior
Bailey Williams earned her third double-double of the season with 11 kills and 12 digs while sophomore setter
Erin Derick tabbed her sixth career double-double (43a/11d). Freshman
Stephanie Der recorded a career-high 28 digs in the loss.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
La Salle: 6-7, 1-1
La Salle dropped its conference opener to VCU, 3-2, on Sept. 27 in Richmond, Va. In their next match of opening weekend, the Explorers swept Davidson for their first conference win of the season.
The reigning A-10 Setter of the Year Kathryn Wood leads the team with 10.13 assists per set – good for second in the conference. Samantha Graver and Devin Corah are each averaging more than three kills per set – 3.68 and 3.17, respectively.
Last season, La Salle swept Mason on Oct. 21 in Philadelphia, Pa. The Patriots are looking for their first win over the Explorers since Sept. 24, 2017 when Mason earned a five-set road win over the Explorers.
Duquesne: 6-9, 0-2
Duquesne began conference play 0-2, falling to Davidson and VCU last weekend. The Dukes will face George Washington on Friday night before battling Mason on Sunday.
Redshirt junior libero Claire Doe steadies the Dukes' defense with 4.04 digs per set. Senior middle blocker Liz Wayne is hitting .357 for the second highest clip in the Atlantic 10.
Last season, Mason overcame a 0-2 set deficit to defeat Duquesne in five sets on Oct. 19 in Pittsburgh, Pa. Niu tabbed a career-high 28 kills in Mason's first win over the Dukes since 2016.
Mason leads the all-time series, 7-6.
LOOKING AHEAD
Mason returns to Fairfax for its A-10 home opener on Oct. 11 against Dayton. The following night, the Patriots host Saint Louis at 7 p.m. for Girls Scouts Night. There will be a post-match clinic for all Girls Scouts in attendance.
