Final Stats

WASHINGTON - The Georgetown volleyball team ran into a hot Butler squad on Friday night, falling on the road by a 3-0 (25-15, 25-21, 25-19) score in a BIG EAST Conference matchup. The match was played at Butler's Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

Ashlie Williams (Los Angeles, Calif./Marymount) led the Georgetown offense with nine kills and Dani White (Mission Viejo, Calif./Mission Viejo) and Alex Johnson (Tampa, Fla./Plant) each finished with seven. Emily Gisolfi (Allentown, Pa./Parkland) had a team-high 13 digs and Lauren Saar (Richland, Mich./Plainwell) was in double figures with 11 digs. Casey Speer (Durham, N.C./Riverside) had a double-double with 28 assists and 11 digs.

The Hoyas (9-17, 3-10 BIG EAST) fell behind 5-1 early, but kills by Terese Cannon (Pittsford, N.Y./Our Lady of Mercy), Williams and Speer helped cut the deficit to 7-4. Butler (18-8, 10-4 BIG EAST) used an 8-2 run to open a 15-6 advantage. GU could not get any closer than seven as the Bulldogs took the opening set, 25-15.

A kill by Saar and combination block from Williams and Cannon tied the score at four early in the second set. Things were still knotted at 12 when back-to-back kills by Cannon and Johnson gave the Hoyas a 14-12 lead. Butler responded, however, with four-consecutive points to regain the lead at 16-14. Another kill by Johnson pulled Georgetown within one at 16-15, but a 5-2 run by the Bulldogs put the Blue & Gray in a four-point hole, 21-17. Consecutive kills by Johnson and a service ace by Saar saved three set points, but the Hoyas could not complete the comeback, falling 25-21 in the second set.

It was a back-and-forth affair for the first half of the third set as neither team could gain more than a two-point lead. A combination block from Williams and Saar and an ace by Cannon gave GU a 10-8 lead, but the Bulldogs came right back to tie things back up. Knotted at 11, another block by Saar and White put the Hoyas up, but Butler again responded. With the score tied at 14, the Bulldogs used a 4-1 run to open up the first three-point advantage of the set, 18-15. A Butler error and Johnson kill brought the Hoyas within one, at 18-17, but the Bulldogs scored seven of the final nine points to win the set and sweep the match.

"Butler is a good team and playing well," Georgetown Head Coach Arlisa Williams said. "We came out slow and tried to play catch up and it is difficult to play from behind against a talented team on the road. We served aggressively and passed the ball well, but left some balls out there defensively and could not terminate as often as we needed.

"The good thing is we get to play again tomorrow and know that we can build on tonight's performance."

Georgetown will play at Xavier on Saturday afternoon in Cincinnati. First serve is scheduled for 4 p.m.