After a rough showing against George Mason, Volleyball bounced back 24 hours later with a sweep vs. George Washington. PHOTO CREDIT: gorhody.com
The Rhode Island Women’s Volleyball team finished the final leg of their four-game road trip this past weekend, splitting matchups between George Mason and George Washington.
The first matchup was against George Mason in Virginia. The last time the two teams played, the Rams won at home 3-1. However, this time around, things were much different.
The first set began as a back-and-forth affair between the Patriots and the Rams, with George Mason going 9-8 early in the set. The hosts eventually got some momentum going with an 11-4 run to win the set, 25-16.
The second set was a thriller, with both sides taking it all the way down to the wire. In the set, there were 15 ties and seven lead-changes. Freshman Grace Hammond, who finished the day with a whopping 28 assists, helped give the Rams a 21-20 lead with a setup for Mariah Paulette, but George Mason finished the set by winning five of the next seven points to take the 25-23 victory.
The last set was as close as they come with the Rams refusing to be swept and the Patriots fighting hard. It appeared that the Rams had the set won after kills from junior Gillian Klise and Hammond gave them a 23-18 lead. However, George Mason made another comeback run and tied the game at 23 before overcoming two match points to win the set 28-26.
Notable performances from the Rams included Hammond, who finished with seven digs on top of her 28 assists, as well as graduate student Jamie Smith who added 11 kills and seven digs of her own.
The next match was a complete turnaround from the previous day, as the Rams took on George Washington, a team that they lost to previously in heartbreaking fashion by the score of 3-2. The Rams, though, were determined to turn their previous loss around.
They did just that.
The first set was all Rams as they opened on a 10-2 run and never looked back. The closest it got was 21-16, but the Rams finished on a 4-0 run and won the set 25-16.
The Colonials responded in the second set, holding the lead until sophomore Brynne Wright gave the Rams an 11-10 lead. From there, the Rams used a 7-3 run and solid defense to finish out the set 25-18.
The third set appeared as if it would be a blowout as Rhody scored seven of the first ten points. However, a strong fight from the Colonials tied the game at 19 before a 6-1 run from the Rams finished the set and match out with a 25-20 victory.
Hammond, once again, was the star of the match, finishing with 42 assists, six digs, one ace, one block and one kill. Head Coach Angel Agu has remained impressed since day one with Hammond’s desire to work hard.
“Grace is a winner,” Agu said. “She wants to know when she makes mistakes, and her desire to improve for her teammates is so impressive for a freshman.”
Hammond, though, gave all the credit to her teammates.
“My teammates have really shown me how to succeed at this level,” Hammond said. “Their mentality is so impressive, and it shows me that I have to always be focused on the next play and the next game.”
Hammond was followed up by senior captain Ella Ratzloff, who finished with 16 digs, giving her 407 for the year. With that, Ratzloff became the first player in program history to record multiple 400-dig seasons.
Agu was thrilled with her team’s ability to turn a 3-0 defeat into a 3-0 victory in just 24 hours.
“I think our team’s ability to compartmentalize that first loss was the reason we got that win against George Washington,” Agu said. “It’s pretty cool to see, in 24 hours, they can make that much of a change in their mindset to get the win.
Agu, Hammond and the Rams look to finish October strong this weekend when they take on Duquesne and Dayton on Saturday and Sunday at Keaney Gymnasium. Both matches are set to start at 6 p.m.