DAVIDSON, N.C. — George Mason defeated Davidson 3-1 on Friday, winning 17-25, 25-23, 25-21, 25-14. The Patriots closed with a 25-14 fourth set that included an 8-0 run.
The Patriots could not overcome Davidson's mid-set separation, as the home side moved ahead 16-7 in the first set. Earlier, the Green & Gold answered the opening points with kills from
Jenna Hunt,
Kiera Hamilton and
Meredith Brown, with Hamilton's second kill tying the set at 4-4. After falling behind, the Patriots got a Davidson service error, a
Gabriella Gelfound kill and two Davidson attack errors to get to 16-11, but Davidson scored the final four points to take the set 25-17.
In the second set, the Green & Gold handled the late pressure, answering Davidson's 21-20 lead with back-to-back Hamilton kills and finishing the set 25-23 on
Nia Thompson's kill from
Ava Cheney. Earlier, Thompson and Gelfound supplied three straight kills during Cheney's serve to move the Patriots ahead 10-6.
After Davidson moved ahead 14-13 in the third set, the Patriots recovered with a Brown kill, a Hamilton service ace and a Hamilton kill to move in front 18-15. The Patriots later pushed the margin to 23-19 on a Hamilton kill and a block by Gelfound and Brown. Thompson closed the set with a kill from Cheney, giving the Green & Gold a 25-21 set win.
The Patriots flipped the fourth set after trailing 5-4, taking the lead on
Mia Hazelett's kill and continuing through a seven-point serving stretch from
Autumn Martinez-Robinson to move ahead 12-5. The run included two Martinez-Robinson aces, kills by Hazelett and Thompson, and blocks involving Cheney and Hazelett, and the Patriots closed the set at 25-14.
PATRIOT POINTS
Nia Thompson
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- team-high 19 kills
- team-high 19.0 points
- 12 digs
- .319 hitting percentage
Kiera Hamilton
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- 15 kills
- 16 digs
- 17.5 points
- 2 service aces
Ava Cheney
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- team-high 45 assists
- career-high 15 digs
- 4 blocks
- 2 service aces
Autumn Martinez-Robinson
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- team-high 18 digs
- 7 assists
- 2 service aces
UP NEXT
The Patriots stay in Davidson, North Carolina, to face Davidson on Saturday, Oct. 3, at 2 p.m.
