Photo credit: GW Athletics
By Matthew Brooks (@brooksie1219)
Volleyball picked up their third victory in a row in a midweek standalone match against Orange Line rival George Mason. The Revolutionaries (6-10, 3-2 A10) were down early two sets to one, but turned it around, taking the fourth and fifth sets in dramatic fashion, beating the Patriots (6-11, 2-3 A10) 3-2.
“[I’m] really proud of my team’s determination,” said GW head coach Katie Reifert. “I love seeing that determination out of them when the game is on the line not easing up, that was really really cool to see.
The game was on the line twice for GW in the match. With the final two sets each resulting in deuces, both went into play past their usual point target. The fourth set finished 32-30 on a GMU attack error, preceded by a kill from graduate student outside hitter Grace Wiczek, and the fifth set finished 19-17 on a game winning block from Wiczek and graduate middle blocker Kelsey Watkins.
The Revs have now won three sets just in the past week in this sort of dramatic fashion. On Saturday the Revs finished off their match sweep of Rhode Island in a final set that went to 72 total points.
Reifert talked about how substantial it is that her team has these three tough set victories under their belt.
“That’s gonna serve us so well as we head into these tough conference matches coming up and as we head into the conference tournament. Having that experience with our backs against the wall and coming up on top is gonna really help us.”
With GW in the middle of a tough stretch of five matches in nine days, some rookies worked their way into the lineup as Coach Reifert looked to manage the load of her usual rotation. Defensive specialist Nimya Maruska and outside hitter Haylee Brown both saw court action today, with Brown even recording a key kill in the second set. Brown has seen some action in non conference play, but this is only her second appearance in A10 play. Maruska made only her third appearance of the season.
Reifert was pleased with the level of play and confidence level of her team in this match, even with the new additions. “We had some line-up changes this week and my team still understood that we have what it takes to win with the players that we have. Bench and starters and whatever combo we throw out there, we had what it takes.”
She also noted that despite their limited number of appearances thus far, she “wouldn’t doubt them finding some more time as we move through the season.”
This match yielded career performances from two of GW’s biggest stars this year. Sophomore setter Maeve Loughran racked up a career high 39 assists, and senior right side hitter Liv Womble set career highs in kills with 23 and points with 25. A staggering 15 of those kills came in sets four and five as she led her team through their late match comeback.
“I think Liv is just playing with more confidence than she ever has before,” Reifert said. “I think today, obviously putting her in fourth and fifth set in that six rotation role she was able to get a lot more attempts and our team feels comfortable going to her in clutch moments.”
GW improves to above .500 in conference play with this win, but faces a challenge this weekend on the road, where they have struggled this season. They’ll face Loyola Chicago this Saturday at 4:00 PM and Sunday at 2:00 PM in a pair of matches that will be broadcasted on ESPN+. The Revs make their return to the Smith Center next Friday and Saturday for a pair of matches against Duquesne.
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