The Georgetown volleyball team suffered a disappointing 3-0 loss to George Mason last night in McDonough Gymnasium as the Patriots extended their winning streak to 10 games.

Despite George Mason’s shutout, the Hoyas put up a strong fight and did not go quietly. Georgetown hit 0.316, while George ason only hit 0.240. In addition, the Hoyas posted nine blocks, six more than the Patriots. The majority of the match saw only a one or two point differential with games one and three up for grabs in the late stages.

The Patriots won the first game 32-30 on a controversial call by the referee, who maintained that Georgetown freshman outside hitter Natasha Nguyen brushed a kill by her teammate, junior outside hitter Aline Pereira’s, which landed out of bounds. After losing 25-30 in game two, the Hoyas rebounded with a strong third game. Senior outside hitter Lauren Warner kept Georgetown alive before eventually falling 32-34.

Warner, the team’s captain, played another outstanding game, posting 21 kills, tying the match-high with Pereira. She also had 10 digs, two blocks and an ace. Junior setter Jen Ward contributed a match-high 40 assists, also donating three digs, three kills and a block.

In spite of these efforts, the Hoyas lost focus on little game points, such as a number of serving errors. “We fight hard, but make too many errors,” Head Coach Li Liu said.

The Hoyas are currently missing their starting middle blocker. Senior middle blocker Anna Kleinsorge’s shoulder injury has had a dramatic impact on Georgetown’s play, forcing some team members to play outside of their normal positions. Several underclassmen have been pushed to step up their game and adapt to Kleinsorge’s absence.

“We really need to focus on our side of the court and reduce our errors,” Ward said.

Sophomore middle blocker Sara Albert continued her solid play, adding a match-high five blocks, 10 kills and four digs. Nguyen posted a match-high 11 digs in addition to six kills and two blocks. Sophomore outside hitter Ashley Lancaster made her first collegiate start with six kills, and sophomore outside hitter Julie Grauert contributed five kills and eight digs.

The loss drops Georgetown to 9-7 overall (1-1 Big East), while George Mason improved its record to 12-3 (6-0 CAA). Despite the loss, Warner remains optimistic. “We fought well, played really intensely,” she said. “We came up with a lot of big plays, and I hope that it carries over into the weekend.”

Next up, the Hoyas will resume Big East action, playing host to Virginia Tech this Saturday, Oct. 5 at 2 p.m. and Miami on Sunday, Oct. 6 at 2 p.m.