The Georgetown women’s volleyball team (6-3, Big East) split its two matches on the final day of the Georgetown Classic on Saturday, prevailing against Coppin State (0-9, MEAC) in straight sets (25-13, 25-14, 25-17) and falling in five sets (25-22, 19-25, 25-23, 18-25, 15-12) against Buffalo (5-3, MAC). The Hoyas finished the event with a record of 1-2, with both losses coming in five-set competitions.
Junior middle blocker Symone Speech was named to the All-Tournament team, leading the Blue and Gray at the Georgetown Classic with 3.23 kills per game at a 39.3 percent hitting rate.
The Hoyas bounced back from a close loss to James Madison against Coppin State, dispatching the Bald Eagles in three sets. No Hoya recorded double-digit kills, as a balanced attack featuring three players with at least three kills overwhelmed the Bald Eagles defense. Coppin State never threatened in any of of the games, drawing closest to the Hoyas at 13-9 in the second set before Georgetown pulled away to win, 25-14.
Against Buffalo, Georgetown found themselves in another wire-to-wire battle. Speech led the Hoyas with 22 kills, while junior outside hitter Alyssa Sinnette added 16 kills for the Hoyas, who have now played four five-set matches out of their nine contests on the young season. Junior libero/defensive specialist Kenzie Higareda led all players with 26 digs.
The first set was a back-and-forth affair which culminated in a 22-all tie. The Bulls would score the final three points to capture the frame. In the second set, the Hoyas came out sharp, grabbing an early 7-2 lead that they would not relinquish en route to a 25-19 win. The Bulls capitalized on a late run in the third set, breaking a 20-all tie with a 3-0 run and prevailing, 25-23. The Hoyas cruised through the fourth set, 25-18, to force a decisive fifth set.
Similar to earlier sets, the Hoyas and Bulls found themselves in a late-game tie, this time at 12-all. With the winner requiring just 15 to prevail in the fifth set, the Bulls scored the next three points to take the Georgetown Classic.
Georgetown will return to action next Friday at the Rice Invitational in Houston, TX. The Hoyas will face Arkansas St (5-5, Sun Belt) and Stephen F. Austin (11-1, Southland) before taking on Rice (6-4, Conference USA) on Saturday.
