Updated: Nov. 8, 2018 at 1:37 a.m.

Volleyball stormed onto the court Saturday to reverse its eight-game losing streak.

GW (9-15, 3-9 A-10) played with renewed vigor and energy, besting Davidson (12-12, 5-8 A-10) 27–25, 25–20 and 25–20 at the Smith Center.

The Colonials posted their highest attack percentage since their victory over Rhode Island nearly a month ago, swinging at a .250 clip.

Senior middle blockers Alexis Lete and Kelsey Clark spurred the team’s momentum during their final game in Foggy Bottom. Lete had 11 kills – tying her career-high count – with only one attack error, and her five blocks led both rosters and accounted for more than half of GW’s total blocks.

“Lete has really taken a big chunk of the offensive weight all year,” head coach Sarah Bernson said. “I couldn’t be happier with the two of them, and with their leadership and commitment this season.”

Both seniors said earning a victory in the last home game of their collegiate careers was a special moment for them.

“We’re pretty ecstatic that we were able to get out of this funk that we’ve been in,” Lete said. “It really showed how much the team cares about me and Kelsey.”

The first set of the match was tightly contested, with neither team leading by more than four points at any given point.

The two squads traded points until the end of the set, when back-to-back service errors from both teams tied the game 25-25. A kill from freshman middle blocker Paz Dozie-Nnamah and a block from Lete gave the Colonials the win.

Despite the Wildcats out-hitting the Colonials with a .316 attack percentage to GW’s .286, the set was GW’s most well-rounded offensive showing of the night, with seven Colonials garnering one or more kills.

GW’s defense improved markedly in the second set, holding Davidson to a mere .118 attack percentage. The Colonials jumped out to an early lead they held for the entire set.

Lete and junior outside hitter Skylar Iott provided most of the offense for the Colonials during the second set, tallying nine of the GW’s eleven kills. Iott’s 18 kills on the night were the highest total from either team.

Two kills in a row from Lete sealed the upset for GW in the third set. Davidson currently stands at No. 6 in the conference and could still potentially be tapped into the A-10 Championship.

A key improvement in GW’s play was blocking, something Clark said has been a main focus in practice over the past few weeks.

“We’ve been working on blocking for weeks now and it’s such a relief to finally see results,” Clark said. “Tonight we dialed that back, locked in and it just feels great to push through and execute like we did.”

GW posted nine blocks in the night’s victory, an average of three blocks per set – a significant improvement over its season average of 1.8 blocks per set.

“It would have been great if we could have played like this four weeks ago, but it still shows the capabilities of this team,” Bernson said. “We’re going to keep fighting and improving no matter what.”

This post was updated to reflect the following correction:
The Hatchet incorrectly reported that volleyball is unable to make the A-10 Championship tournament. The team still has a chance to be seeded in the tournament. We regret this error.