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.”