After a difficult road trip to New Jersey, the Hoyas returned home to McDonough Arena on Tuesday, Sept. 29, hoping to get back to their winning ways. Despite putting forth a solid effort, Georgetown was defeated by Virginia Commonwealth 3-1.

The fourth set went back and forth with five tie scores and one lead change. The Hoyas eventually took a commanding 23-20 lead behind several blocks and kills from junior middle blocker Vanessa Dorismond. VCU, however, was able to rally back and take the game 27-25. The Rams fought off set points twice to gain the victory.

Losing in this manner made the defeat especially difficult for the Hoyas.

“It was just a tough match. We played with good effort and played well in spurts,” Head Coach Arlisa Williams said.

VCU dominated the first set; it was able to expand its lead to 23-13. The Blue and Gray cut the lead to six points but eventually lost the set 25-17. The Rams won the set as a result of a stellar .464 hitting percentage.

In the second set, the Hoyas were able to respond to VCU’s first set with one of the spurts that Williams mentioned. After trailing 5-3 early in the set, Georgetown countered to make the score 15-9 in its favor. Aces from sophomore libero Tory Rezin and kills by sophomore outside hitter Sara Manley fueled the Hoya run. Although the Rams put up a fight, the Hoyas ultimately claimed the set 25-19, tying the match at one set apiece.

The Rams regained control of the match in the third set hitting a game-high .588 effiency. They immediately grabbed a 12-3 advantage, but the Blue and Gray briefly responded to make the score 12-10. VCU dominated the rest of the set, however, winning 25-14.

As mentioned, the final set was highly contested. In the end, though, VCU gained the victory, 27-25.

Freshman outside hitter Paris Coleman paced the Hoyas with a .333 hitting percentage. She also recorded eight kills and eight digs.

“We received a good performance from Paris Coleman,” Williams said. “She led the team in efficiency.”

anley had a team-high 11 kills.

VCU has won three straight matches and improved their record to 13-5.

“[VCU] is a very well-coached team,” Williams said. “They are very tough to guard. They have weapons at all positions.”

The Rams were led by freshman outside hitter Michala Kvapilova, who had 15 kills and a .478 efficiency.

The loss, on the other hand, was Georgetown’s third consecutive defeat following a seven-game winning streak. The Hoyas now stand at 10-8 overall and 0-2 in the Big East. Over the weekend, the Hoyas will host two conference foes: St. John’s Friday night at 7 p.m. and Connecticut Sunday at 2 p.m. With a winless league record, Georgetown will be looking to avoid falling in an early season hole in the Big East.”