The Georgetown women’s volleyball team looks to lengthen its winning streak when it hosts the annual Georgetown Classic this weekend in McDonough Arena.
The Hoyas hope to build on their momentum from a string of victories at the Service Academy Challenge where they did not drop a single set to either The Citadel, Columbia or Army West Point. Now 5-1 for the season, the Blue and Gray is off to its most successful season start since 2012.
Looking ahead to this weekend, the Hoyas will face another formidable set of opponents. To kick off its leg of the tournament, Georgetown (5-1, 0-0 Big East) will take on undefeated James Madison University (6-0, 0-0 Colonial Athletic). The last time the Hoyas met the Dukes was during the 2015 season, where they fell in four sets, 3-1.
This year, JMU enters the Georgetown Classic undefeated with 275 kills and 34 aces on the season. Averaging 13.8 kills per set, JMU has the highest number of kills per set out of all of the participating teams.
Georgetown’s defensive unit must come out strong to counter the tireless hitting force of JMU’s squad. Junior libero Kenzie Higareda will need to continue her stellar performance from the Service Academy Challenge and dig out quite a few balls for her team to convert into offensive opportunities. The Dukes average 16.9 digs per set, so the Hoyas will look to top hitters junior outside hitter Alyssa Sinnette, freshman outside hitter Riley Wertzberger and junior middle blocker Symone Speech to capitalize on every opportunity they can. Speech was recently named to the Big East Weekly Honor Roll for her showing at the Service Academy Challenge.
On Sept. 9, the Hoyas will face two teams they have not yet met in competition. At 1 p.m., the Hoyas will face their second opponent of the weekend, the Coppin State University Eagles (0-6, 0-0 Mid Eastern). With no wins yet this season, Coppin State University has nothing to lose going into this weekend’s showdown.
Later in the day, the Blue and Gray will meet the University of Buffalo Bulls (3-2, 0-0 Mid-American). Buffalo enters the weekend with momentum as they are coming off the program’s first ever win against a Big Ten opponent. Buffalo defeated Rutgers 3-2 in a match at the Seton Hall Tournament on Sept. 2. Out of all the teams competing at the Georgetown Classic, Buffalo tallies the most service aces in the least number of matches. While Georgetown boasts a 91.8 service reception percentage, the Hoyas’ serve receive team must be wary of Buffalo’s success on the court.
The Georgetown Classic will certainly be an exciting time for the Hoyas to hone their skills and hopefully overcome challenging opponents to cinch yet another tournament win.
The event begins with Coppin State vs. Buffalo at 4:30 on Friday Sept. 8. The matches continue through the evening and into the next day. The Georgetown Hoyas play at 7 p.m. on Sept. 8 and again at 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Sept. 9. All matches will take place in the McDonough Arena.
