Volleyball (7-18, 4-10 A-10) dropped two matches to No. 18 Dayton in its Atlantic 10 matchup at the Smith Center Friday and Saturday.
The Revs were unable to win any sets in these two games as they struggled to build momentum to overtake Dayton. With four matches left this season, the team is looking to turn their season around before the A-10 Championship tournament later this month.
Following the match, Head Coach Katie Reifert said the team overcame an inconsistent start to their season and found success by embracing their versatility. Reifert said she hopes the team will “crush” their upcoming slate of matches as they approach the end of A-10 play.
“Before this, it was the kind of thing where we had different people stepping up in different days,” Reifert said. “Again, I do think those expectations have been kind of messing with our heads at times where one hitter will step into one match and they’re hitting really well from the jump and so then they’ll keep hitting well.”
Match 1:
The Revs took a quick lead of 8-5 in the first set. However, Dayton was able to gain momentum as they tied the set 14-14. Both teams engaged in back-and-forth rallies as GW was able to tie the score once again 19-19 in the first set. Despite both teams’ offenses clicking, Dayton had an easier time cracking the Revs’ defense, as the Flyers went on a 6-2 run to finish the first set with 25-21.
Dayton extended their run by scoring 6 straight points to start the second set. The Revs responded by cutting the lead to 2 later in the set with the score of 9-11, but the Flyers kept holding onto their lead in the entirety of the second set. Dayton finished the second set with another win of 25-19.
In the third set, GW built an early 11-7 lead. Then again, the Flyers went on an 8-4 run to tie the game 15-15 as GW called a timeout. After the quick break, the Flyers went on another 10-5 dash, which ended the set with a final score of 25-20 and closed out Dayton’s dominating performance to notch the 3-0 sweep.
Junior outside hitters Salem Yohannes and Brittany Myers both led the Revs with 13 kills and 9 kills, respectively. Sophomore setter Maeve Loughran served up a team-high 26 assists and sophomore libero Amina Robinson led the team defensively with 8 digs. Senior outside hitter Elizabeth Drelling recorded 4 aces and Loughran served 3 aces for the Revs.
“It’s kind of just the mentality of play with freedom and don’t let them get their big kills,” Reifert said. “It’s going to happen but then continue to hit back and not let that rattle you. Volleyball is like a chess game and it’s making sure that you can stay determined on the side-out phase.”
Match 2:
Saturday afternoon, the Revs played another three sets, where they fell 0-3 to Dayton. In the first set, despite an early 2-1 lead, the Flyers overtook the set as the Revs failed to pull ahead again through the remainder of the set. The game was briefly knotted at 15-15, but the Flyers quickly pulled ahead again, defeating GW 25-18.
The Flyers continued to coast through the match, closing out the second set 25-13 and the third set 25-15. Despite these shutouts, the Revs played hard throughout, with Yohannes firing 6 kills and Robinson putting up a strong defense with 12 digs. Throughout the game, the Revs managed two blocks, while the Flyers were able to block six of the GW shots.
Late into the third set, the Revs delayed Dayton’s win by earning back three points in a row through two persistent kills by Myers, which were carefully assisted by Loughran. Despite Loughran and Myers’ successful duo play, Dayton fired the final kill of the third set over the Revs front row.
Reifert said the team is looking to recreate the urgency they displayed Friday night against Dayton this Saturday against VCU. GW will host VCU for a pair of matches at the Smith Center Nov. 4 and 5. Both matches will be live on ESPN+.
