Following a successful rebuild last year, the Georgetown University volleyball team sought to continue its upward trajectory with a three-game homestand to open the 2024 season.
The Hoyas (1-2) encountered stiff competition in the D.C. Challenge hosted at McDonough Arena. Although Georgetown dropped three-set games against local rivals American Eagles (5-0) and Howard Bison (2-1), the team managed to pick up a win against the traveling University of California at Riverside (UCR) Highlanders (0-4).
While the young squad managed several strong individual performances, the Hoyas ultimately struggled to close out tight sets against tougher opposition.
Georgetown began the series Aug. 30 against the formidable American University team looking to challenge for the Patriot League title. After letting the first set slip to an 8-3 deficit, the Hoyas powered back to a 10-10 tie behind 4 kills and 1 block by first-year outside hitter Dionna Mitchell. The two teams proceeded to trade scoring runs to tie the score at 19 before the Eagles seized the first set with a 6-2 streak.
The second set was much of the same story. After both teams came out firing on all cylinders for 13 points apiece, American strung together a 5-0 run, including 4 consecutive kills by outside hitter Adelina Berisha. The Hoyas bounced back to a 23-22 lead behind Mitchell and sophomore outside hitter Maria Filippova but conceded three straight points to lose another set.
Berisha and outside hitter Zedo Yilmaz dominated the third set as the Eagles swooped to an early 12-3 lead and never looked back en route to the sweep. Mitchell highlighted Georgetown’s offense in the match with 14 kills, 1 ace and 1 block on a .344 hitting percentage, while first-year setter Juleigh Urbina played admirably with 19 assists and 8 digs.
The Hoyas rebounded convincingly against the Highlanders in four sets the next day. Senior outside hitter Mary Grace Goyena’s 2 kills and 2 blocks, along with multiple UCR errors, gave Georgetown an early 13-9 lead. After the Highlanders managed to bring the score to 15 apiece, the Hoyas pulled away behind a strong all-around team effort that included 3 aces to win the set 25-21.
Senior outside hitter Giselle Williams and sophomore middle blocker Kamryn Lee-Caracci paced Georgetown in the second set, yet despite their best efforts, the team could not shake loose its opposition. The Highlander right side duo of Trinity Sheridan and Carissa Wiles kept the set close and powered a final push to negate a Hoya set point for the second set.
Even as UCR sustained its newfound momentum into the third set for a 12-7 advantage, Williams stepped up with 5 kills, 2 aces and 1 assist for the 25-21 set victory. Goyena helped Georgetown seal the game with 6 kills en route to a 25-19 fourth set, giving the team its first victory of the season.
During the match, Goyena notched 11 kills on a .333 hitting percentage to become the 16th Hoya to surpass 1,000 career kills, while Lee-Caracci proved efficient with 7 kills, 4 blocks and 3 digs on a .429 hitting percentage. Defensively, senior libero Karis Park turned in a vintage performance with 22 digs and 8 assists, while junior middle blocker Vaughan Anoa’i accounted for 9 blocks.
The MEAC championship-favorite Bison proved to be the toughest matchup of the weekend, led by two-time conference Player of the Year outside hitter Rya McKinnon’s 19 kills. Howard registered an unanswered eight-point and six-point run to storm out to a 25-16 first set.
Yet the Hoyas showed fight, even after falling behind 14-9 in the second set. Williams and Filippova helped lead a 6-0 run to reclaim the lead, but Georgetown could not muster a final comeback and fell 25-23 in set two. The Hoyas could not finish strong to avoid the sweep as the Bison once again romped out to a 10-3 run to close out the game.
Mitchell and Williams have emerged as early leaders of Georgetown’s offensive unit with 33.5 and 33 points, respectively, and Park remains the core of the defensive unit at 45 digs across the three matches. Filippova and Lee-Caracci are continuing to grow as core pieces for the team, while Goyena still has another offensive gear to kick into as the season progresses. How responsibilities are delegated between the setter tandem of sophomore Emily Wen and Urbina will be an interesting development for the rest of the season.
Georgetown returns to action in the four-game Maryland Invitational starting Sept. 6 against the Alabama A&M Bulldogs (2-2).