Final Stats

PHILADELPHIA - The Georgetown University volleyball team lost a BIG EAST Conference matchup at Villanova, 3-0 (25-8, 25-18, 26-24). The match was played at Villanova's Nevin Field House.

The Hoyas fall to 10-16 overall and 4-9 in the BIG EAST. The Wildcats improved to 21-5 and 11-2 in conference play.

Liv King (Ardmore, Pa./Lower Merion) and Lauren Saar (Richland, Mich./Plainwell) led the offense with seven kills apiece. Kenzie Higareda (Woodbridge, Va./Forest Park) finished with a match-high 11 digs, while Paige McKnight (Atlanta, Ga./Dunwoody) contributed 16 assists and eight digs.

First Set
Villanova scored nine of the set's first 10 points, and the Hoyas could not dig themselves out of the hole as the Wildcats won the first set, 25-8. Five different players had a kill for GU and Higareda led the defense with three digs.

Second Set
The second set was tight for the first half as the two teams went back-and-forth. After a kill from Saar gave the Hoyas a 17-16 lead however, Villanova responded with a 9-1 run to win the set, 25-18. Saar led the GU offense with three kills while King and McKnight each had two. Higareda led the backcourt with four digs.

Third Set
Both sides swapped large runs in the third set. GU erased a 7-5 deficit and took a 14-7 lead with a 9-0 run behind two aces from McKnight and two kills each from Somto Egbuonu (Grand Prairie, Texas/South Grand Prairie) and Saar. Villanova used a 6-1 run to pull within one, 18-17. After the Hoyas used a 4-0 run to climb back ahead, 22-17, the Wildcats answered with six-consecutive points to take a 23-22 lead. The two teams traded tallies until, tied at 24, Villanova scored the final points to win the set, 26-24. King led the offense with four kills, while Saar and Egbuonu each had three. McKnight and Mariana Sullivan (Bronxville, N.Y./Chapin School) each led the defense with five digs and Higareda added four more. The Hoyas had four aces in the set, led by two from McKnight. King also added one and Sullivan had the first ace of her career.

Season Notes
Saar now sits at 980 career digs, just 20 away from joining a select few in program history to record 1,000 career digs.

For the season, Alyssa Sinnette (Pearland, Texas/Dawson) leads the Hoyas with 323 kills and 3.51 kills per set. Symone Speech (Oak Park, Ill./Oak Park-River Forest) leads the front court with 0.75 blocks per set and has a team-high .308 hitting percentage. McKnight is averaging 9.71 assists per set and leads the team with 35 service aces, while Higareda is atop the defense with 4.50 digs per set.

The Hoyas will remain on the road next weekend for matches at DePaul (Friday, 8 p.m. ET) and Marquette (Saturday, 8 p.m. ET).