The Georgetown women’s volleyball team dropped two interconference matches at McDonough Arena this weekend, coming up short against DePaul on Saturday.

Georgetown (7-14, 1-8 Big East) and DePaul (8-13, 2-7 Big East) entered their match tied for last in the division, with equal records at 7-12 overall and 1-6 in league play. The Blue and Gray fought hard through five sets, but ultimately the Blue Demons edged them out to notch a victory.

Despite the result, Georgetown junior middle blocker Symone Speech led the way with 20 kills and 10 digs to complete the double-double. Speech swung for an even 0.500 hitting percentage on the match.

Junior setter Paige McKnight also had 10 digs across the five games while setting the ball 35 times. Many of those sets came in the direction of junior outside hitters Alyssa Sinnette and Olivia King, who provided nine and 10 kills, respectively.

The match itself was a back-and-forth battle between the Hoyas and the Blue Demons. Georgetown dominated the first set, starting with an 18-3 run that proved insurmountable for the opponent and led to a 25-15 victory for the Hoyas. Speech was key at the front, as she hit five kills on offense and made two blocks on defense.

The Blue Demons returned the punch in the second set, however, and went on their own 19-7 run to put themselves well ahead. They would finish the set 25-18 to bring the match to an even 1-1.

The competition was tight in the beginning of the third set, with DePaul barely ahead of Georgetown 10-9, before the Blue Demons went on a run to bring the score to 23-13. With Sinnette serving up some aces, Georgetown closed the gap to 23-18. DePaul regrouped after a timeout and finished the set 25-18.

Down 2-1 with their backs against the wall, the Hoyas buckled down on defense and won the fourth set 25-18. Junior libero Kenzie Higareda was instrumental to the defensive effort, recording several digs on her way to 11 for the day. The deciding fifth set was close throughout, with the score tied at 11-11 toward the end. However, DePaul went on a four-point run to finish it off 15-11 in their favor.

The following evening featured what proved to be a challenging match against Big East powerhouse Marquette University, who came into the contest leading the division at 7-0 in league play and 13-5 overall.

Despite the second loss of the weekend for Georgetown, many players rose to the challenge and put up some strong numbers. For example, Sinnette knocked down 11 kills with a 0.385 hitting percentage — her third career best in 78 college matches.

“I feel like I’m getting my groove back from last year, which I’m really excited about,” Sinnette said. “And I couldn’t have done it without my teammates. Passing was good, and [McKnight] was giving me great sets, so I was able to find the court really well and terminate.”

Speech also played well with six kills, and King and McKnight each recorded five kills of their own. Higareda dug the ball 12 times through three sets.

The first set started off close between the two teams, with Georgetown down 11-8 at one point. Marquette slowly pulled away, though, and ended the set 25-17 in their favor. The second set was even more lopsided, as Georgetown struggled to find a way past the tall Marquette blockers. Down 26-9, the Blue and Gray went on a three-point run to bring the score to 24-12, but the gap was too wide, and Marquette scored the final point to win the second set.

Georgetown was not going out without a fight, however, and came out to a 6-3 lead led by sophomore right side Margo Snipe. (Full disclosure: Margo Snipe is a staff writer for The Hoya.)

“[Snipe] came in and offered some excellent energy for us at the end of the second and beginning of the third set,” Head Coach Arlisa Williams said.

Despite the early lead, the Golden Eagles rebounded quickly and went on a couple of offensive runs that would soon win them the match, 25-16.

“We’ll have moments where we look really good and where we can run all kinds of things offensively, but we are inconsistent with our passing, so that needs to get better,” Williams said.

Next weekend, the Hoyas look to turn things around against another tough opponent as they travel to Villanova on Saturday for a 7 p.m. matchup.