This post was written by Hatchet senior staff writer Alex Kist.
A second night without standout junior middle blocker Chidima Osuchukwu did not slow down the Colonials’ effort this time. GW bounced back quickly from a 3-2 loss against Rhode Island on Friday and shook Fordham in a 3-0 sweep Saturday.
Sophomore outside hitter Aaliya Davidson was a firecracker for the Colonials, amassing 16 kills and six digs. With sophomore middle blocker Kristel Moor stepping up on the block and freshman outside hitter Kelsey Clark returning to her natural position in the middle, the Colonials’ front line more than survived the night without their star. Set scores were 25-16, 25-16 and 25-18.
“I feel like we are finally starting to get it,” head coach Amanda Ault said. “We’re making moves to play our best volleyball in November.”
Ault said that her team made strides in both weekend games with the offense running the right plays and finding the holes in the floor, and the defense diving to keep balls in play and getting in the best positions for a block. Against Fordham, in particular, Ault was proud of the team’s fluidity and rhythm.
“Today, I can say the chemistry is the best it’s ever been, with the way the team was communicating and helping each other out,” Ault said.
To open play, GW (17-8, 6-3 A-10) came out swinging with a forceful .455 attack percentage and jumped out to an early 13-7 lead. After Fordham added a little friction to the fairly smooth set, the Colonials responded with a 7-0 run to run away with the set.
Davidson spiked right through the center to open up the second set. With the Colonials’ momentum high, Davidson put another impressive kill down the middle to push GW ahead at 5-4. The set seesawed back and forth until a long rally ended when senior setter Jordan Timmer tipped a ball over the net.
The Colonials extended their lead to 11-8, then took the next six points, forcing two back-to-back attack errors created by the blocking of Davidson and senior middle blocker Maggie Skjelbred. With Fordham missing the mark on its shots, GW continued to dominate through to set-point.
Along with Skjelbred and Davidson, Moor stepped up on her blocking game this weekend and contributed two block assists to the team’s 8.0 total blocks. She also added six kills and two digs.
“Things are starting to click for Kristel,” Ault said. “She understanding that ‘I don’t need to crank it on every ball, I can tip over the block and find the score’. Blocking-wise, I think she is seeing her hitters a little bit more and picking good places to be.”
The Rams started to show signs of life in the third set, but the Colonials put the game away. After getting tied up at 10-10, GW took the next two points after a kill by freshman outside hitter Hanna Justesen and capitalizing on a bad set. The Colonials went on a 5-1 run at 13-17 to extend the lead. Finally, Justesen closed out the game with a kill.
Ault said that the team still needs to sharpen their blocking skills. She wants to see her players get a little more distance from the net, so the front line is able to get the ball over rather than get too much air on the ball. Davidson, who contributed five block assists, agreed.
“I think we can work on getting ourselves in better positions with the blocking more, I think we’re up there but sometimes we aren’t placed over so we don’t get some of those,” Davidson said.
Ault said that Osuchukwu is day-to-day with an injury that is mostly precautionary, and that she would be evaluated before next Saturday’s game.
The Colonials return to action on Saturday to take on Revolutionary Rival George Mason at 1 p.m.
