After dropping the first set of Tuesday night’s match at the Smith Center against the Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks by only two points, volleyball appeared to be in for a competitive match.
But in the second set, after leading 5–3, the Colonials let up eight points in a row and lost the set. GW never led by more than one point for the remainder of match.
The Colonials (4-10) lost 3–0 against a consistent Maryland Eastern Shore (11-4) offense – the team’s second consecutive and fifth home loss.
“We didn’t play great, we were very error prone,” head coach Sarah Bernson said. “We missed some early swings and then I think we just eased off the gas too much and this team comes at you.”
GW tallied 23 errors in the three-set contest. In the second set alone the Colonials garnered double the number of errors the Hawks had.
The Colonials also had their third lowest attack percentage of the season, swinging for .061 while the Hawks ended the night with a .182 swinging percentage.
GW had five total blocks in the night’s match, but on the season outblock their opponents had an average 6.6 blocks per game.
Junior outside hitter Kelsey Clark led the squad with a team-high 10 kills and a .412 attack percentage.
In the opening set, the Colonials were one point away from winning the set before the Hawks scored two quick points to tie the score 24–24.
Maryland Eastern Shore pulled out the 27–25 win to squash the home team’s momentum and pick up a point after the score had been tied 16 times in the set.
The second set didn’t open the way GW planned as Maryland Eastern Shore found a run. The Hawks took an early 9–5 lead in the set after trailing 5–3. The Colonials swung for just .077 and fell 25–19 in the set.
“Our coaches were trying to get us back in the game especially in the second set when they had a nine-point serving run,” sophomore outside hitter Skylar Iott said. “We knew that we needed to get the ball back, but we are just kind of slow in our actions.”
Maryland Eastern Shore scored another seven unanswered points early in the third set to break a tie with the Colonials and push the score to 13–6. GW dropped the final set 25–15.
“We swung aggressively,” senior outside hitter Aaliya Davidson said. “We had some errors, we didn’t really cushion ourselves with tight serve receive, but I think we had some aggressive serves.”
Davidson had seven kills with a .160 swinging percentage on the night – the second highest total on the team.
Freshman outside hitter Callie Fauntleroy was not dressed in a uniform, and hasn’t played a single set in the last seven matches.
Tuesday was the last home game for the Colonials before they embark on a seven-game road trip to open their Atlantic 10 season. Heading into conference play, the team has been unable to string together more than two consecutive wins in a row this season.
“We are dealing with consistency issues right now, so that is part of it,” Bernson said. “It is going to come down to the players just executing their shots, making better decisions and getting confidence with that.”
GW will return to action in its first conference game of the season against La Salle Friday night. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m.
