Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Notre Dame Snaps Hoyas’ Winning Home Streak

All good things eventually come to an end.

Notre Dame dealt Georgetown (8-7, 1-1 Big East) its first Big East loss Saturday, breaking the Hoyas’ five-game home winning streak. Steady defensive play and consistency on offense propelled the Fighting Irish past the Hoyas in straight sets, 25-20, 25-17, 25-18.

In what has become a trend, the Hoyas came out strong, gaining an early 7-4 lead. But Notre Dame (7-7, 2-0 Big East) persevered, making Georgetown work for every point. The Irish’s doggedness finally put them ahead at 11-10. But Georgetown maintained its play, and senior middle blocker Kit Niesen’s ace helped the Hoyas towards a 14-12 lead.

Then the Fighting Irish kicked it up a gear. They went on an 8-2 run, resulting in a 20-16 Notre Dame lead.

“It was a fast-paced game and Notre Dame came out with guns blazing,” Head Coach Arlisa Williams said.

Georgetown tried to regroup and called a timeout. The Hoyas won the first two points after the timeout, but a two-point gap was the closest they would get. A serve into the net ended Georgetown’s previously flawless home court record; it was the first set they dropped at McDonough Gymnasium this season.

The two teams were even in the second set until aggressive serving from freshman setter Ashley Malone put the Hoyas ahead 7-5. As in the first set, Notre Dame denied a Georgetown run. The Fighting Irish took the lead at 16-12 and kept it. Despite a couple acrobatic defensive plays by freshman libero Tory Rezin, Georgetown could not mount a comeback. Notre Dame continued swinging away and went on an 8-3 run to put themselves a point away from a two-set lead at 24-15. They converted on their second set-point.

Two sets down, the Hoyas decided to “change the matchups,” according to Williams, in order to give Notre Dame “a new look.”

“[We tried to] step it up a bit . and take care of the first ball,” Williams said.

The Hoyas’ change of matchups offset the Fighting Irish in the beginning of the third set, with Georgetown grabbing an early lead. However, Notre Dame soon made adjustments, and went ahead at 7-5. A buildup of errors for the Hoyas helped the Irish to a 16-7 lead. Aggressive play at the net by sophomore middle blocker Vanessa Dorismond brought Georgetown within five at 20-15, but Notre Dame once again proved it is not the combustible type. The Irish remained focused and cemented their win with a 25-18 third set victory.

“We could not get out of the passing rut,” Williams said.

There was an exception. With 23 assists, senior setter Caitlin Boland’s passing was solid. “Caitlin Boland was great,” Williams said.

“We were a little bit out of system,” Boland said “Defensively we did a pretty good job.”

Boland acknowledged the high pace of the match, saying that the team worked on slowing the play down when the ball was in their court.

Statistically, the key difference between the two teams was in their hitting percentages. Notre Dame boasted percentages of .343, .375 and .310 over the three sets, as compared to Georgetown’s .133, .00 and .185. The .00 means that in the second set, the Hoyas had as many hitting errors as kills. Notre Dame had a .344 hitting percentage for the match; Georgetown had a .099 final hitting percentage.

Junior outside hitter Jessica Hardy led the Hoya offense with nine kills, followed by Dorismond with five. Georgetown outdid Notre Dame in serving, ending the match with one more ace and two fewer serving errors. Defensively, the outcome reflects the numbers. The Irish ended the match with 14 more digs and six more blocks than the Hoyas.

The loss came after Georgetown’s 3-0 win over DePaul Friday night in the conference opener.

Georgetown will be on the road this weekend, facing off against West Virginia in Morgantown, W.Va., on Friday at 7:00 p.m. and against Pittsburgh on Sunday at 2 p.m.

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