FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason women's volleyball team dropped a midweek contest to Navy, 3-1, on Tuesday night at the RAC in Fairfax, Va. The Patriots move to 2-4 on the season while Navy improves to 3-3.
Next up, the Patriots will participate in the Maryland Invite, hosted by Maryland, on Sept. 13-14. Mason will face Ivy League contender Princeton on Sept. 13, followed by Big Ten foe Maryland and SEC dynamo Arkansas on Sept. 14.
"Tonight was a battle against a great and gritty Navy team," said head coach
Aylene Ilkson. "I think we picked up our blocking and serving towards the end but it was not enough to push us over the edge. With A-10 play only two weeks away, we are focusing on learning from our mistakes and getting better every day."
Sophomore outside hitter
Siron Hardy led the Patriots with a career-high hitting percentage of .344 with 14 kills. Sophomore opposite
ShaLi Niu added 10 kills while senior outside hitter
Bailey Williams posted a season-high 21 digs.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
- The Patriots fell to the Mids, 18-25, 25-21, 20-25, 19-25.
- Mason held the advantage in blocking, 8.5 to four, with sophomore Peyton Ehmke adding a team-high six blocks.
- The Patriots hit a season-low .140 in the match, and a set-low .095 in the third stanza.
- The two teams combined for 25 service errors and 15 service aces. Marlanna Bozicevich, Erin Derick and Jewel Clark each tabbed two aces in the match.
- After taking a 4-3 lead in second set, the Patriots never looked back, cruising to a 25-21 victory.
- A pair of runs allowed the Mids to take the third set, 25-20, and a 2-1 lead in the match.
- Mason cut Navy's lead to one, 15-14, in the fourth set; but the Mids responded with five straight points to ultimately claim the final stanza, 25-19.
UP NEXT
The Patriots will travel to College Park, Md., to participate in the Maryland Invite. Mason will face Ivy League contender Princeton on Sept. 13, followed by host Maryland and SEC dynamo Arkansas on Sept. 14.
