The Georgetown volleyball team (10-16, 4-9 Big East) has a quick turnaround this weekend traveling to play both Butler and Xavier, both of whom – along with Creighton – beat Georgetown last weekend at home.
Georgetown encountered this kind of scheduling earlier this season when it played Seton Hall and St. John’s on two consecutive weekends, winning the first two and losing the following two. The Hoyas are hoping to reverse the roles this time around.
“We’ve done it before when we had Seton Hall and St. John’s, and it wasn’t a good thing then, we ended up losing both of them, so hopefully it will be a good thing this time,” Head Coach Arlisa Williams said.
The losses are still fresh for the Blue and Gray, who will seek redemption from Butler and Xavier.
“We’ve been here before, we know what the teams are like … so hopefully just some fresh legs underneath us and knowing what they do will be in our favor,” Williams said. “And we always play well on the road.”
The Hoyas fell to the Bulldogs (21-6, 8-4 Big East) in three sets after a three game weekend, but they are looking to bring more energy to the matches this time around.
“I think more than anything, we’ll be fresher,” Williams said. “We have seven players who have to play quite a bit of minutes and don’t get much mental and physical rest. So for us to be mentally and physically sharp, I think it will help us.”
Butler will have the momentum on its side from a perfect weekend, having swept Georgetown and fellow conference rival Villanova.
Georgetown will have to watch out for Butler’s junior outside hitter Belle Obert, who was inducted into the Big East Honor Roll after recording 19 kills, 15 digs and seven blocks during the weekend.
Xavier players also obtained Big East awards this week. Senior middle blocker Alex Smith earned Player of the Week after hitting .550 with 22 kills and no errors against Villanova and Georgetown, while freshman outside hitter Abbey Bessler earned an honorable mention for her 33 kills and 19 digs.
In a heartbreaking loss to Xavier last Friday, Georgetown started out strong until the Musketeers closed the game out 17-15 during a decisive fifth set.
“We know that Xavier’s a very good team, and they’re going to be excited about playing at home, but it’s about redemption for us right now,” Williams said.
The Blue and Gray played a strong game, but they could not capitalize on certain moments, ultimately resulting in a loss. This time, they’re determined not to repeat those mistakes.
“We think that we left a few things out there: some points that we can go get, some errors that we can reduce,” Williams said. “If we play well and they play well, it’s going to be another great match.”
Sophomore outside hitter Lauren Saar continues to lead the Georgetown squad and she had yet another double-double against Butler.
With only three games left in the season, the Hoyas are seeking to add more wins to their four conference victories. They are currently ranked fifth in the Big East, so they were not able to clinch a spot in the playoffs this season. However, there’s still a lot of motivation left in the tank.
“When we realized that we could not catch the fourth team, there was a lot of disappointment that we would not be able to make it to the Big East Tournament this year,” Williams said. “But we were picked last in the conference, and so I think us being in fifth and going out and making sure that we stay there is going to be a huge accomplishment for this team.”
With that in mind, the Blue and Gray will go out fighting.
“We have players who love volleyball and love this program and just want to be as good as they can be, so the mentality going into these last three matches is ‘let’s redeem ourselves,'” Williams said.