WASHINGTON – Georgetown University's volleyball team dropped a hard-fought 3-1 (19-25, 25-23, 25-23, 30-28) match to visiting Butler in BIG EAST action on Friday night. The Hoyas fall to 4-10 overall and 0-3 in league competition while the Bulldogs even their record to 8-8 and move to 2-1 in conference play.
"Tonight was a great defensive battle," Head Coach
David Heller said. "Jess is proving to be a real threat to other teams in our back court. Our offense was firing well in set one and then cooled down a bit, but I'm proud of how we battled and responded. Mak and Brennan added some needed firepower in the middle to help our offense along. Our serving pressure was great again tonight and I loved seeing the future of our program blooming. There was a point with five first year players on the court tonight holding their own. It is really exciting to see and we are ready to see some of these teams the second time in conference play."
Hoya Highlights
How it Happened
- Georgetown took control of the match early and led 6-2 in the opening set before Butler rallied back to knot things up at 8-8. Keeping it close, the Hoyas began to pull away late and posted a 20-15 lead to force a Bulldog timeout. Three-straight points out of the huddle made it a 20-18 edge, but the Blue & Gray held tight down the stretch to win the stanza 25-19.
- The second set proved to be another back-and-forth affair, indicative of the entire match, as Butler claimed momentum following a 3-0 run after a 9-9 early tie. Georgetown would not be able to draw even again in the frame despite pulling within one point late, including at 24-23, before eventually dropping the set 25-23.
- In the third, the competition was no different as both sides battled for any edge they could find the entire frame. Tied at 16-16, Butler looked to have the upper hand by pushing to a 22-18 lead with a 6-2 run, but GU responded and tied things up again at 23-23 before the Bulldogs closed out the frame on back-to-back kills.
- The fourth set would feature 13 ties and five lead changes throughout as extra points were needed to declare the winner. Butler led 24-22 before the Hoyas battled back to see their own set point at 26-25, but eventually fell 30-28 after fighting off five Butler match points in the frame.
Butler Notes
- Melody Davison led the Bulldogs with 18 kills while Brittany Robinson and Mariah Grunze both added 10.
- Grunze posted a double-double with 11 digs as well while Marissa McKelvey posted 47 assists to go with 13 digs for another.
- Jaymeson Kinley paced the defense with 29 digs while Robinson had five blocks on the night.
Side Out
The Hoyas remain home to continue their four-match homestand with a BIG EAST showdown against Xavier on Saturday, October 2 at 3 p.m.
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All Georgetown Volleyball home matches are currently scheduled to be played at McDonough Arena. In accordance with Washington, D.C. regulations, masks are required for attendance at all indoor events on campus.
