The University of Mary Washington volleyball team saw its storybook season come to a close with a tough five-set loss to Washington University in the NCAA Division III national quarterfinals on Thursday night in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Game scores were 27-25, 24-26, 23-25, 25-23, 15-9. The Eagles close with a record of 31-4.
"What a match.. that was a hard fought battle", said UMW head coach Matt Troy. "I thought we fought hard and were so close, but Wash U made some great adjustments. It was a great match to be a part of."
In the first, there were five early ties before Wash U rallied for a pair of points. UMW answered with two of their own to tie the score at 7-7, but again the Bears rallied for two points to regain the lead.
The Bears led, 14-11, seven of the next eight points went UMW's way, including four kills from junior Rachel Hendricks, and the Eagles held the lead at 18-15. After an Emma Olson kill gave UMW a 21-17 cushion, Washington responded with three straight points, but the Eagles regrouped to take a 24-22 lead. But Wash U. scored four of the final five points to secure the first set, 27-25.
In the second, the action remained extremely tight, but Wash U made a run to lead, 14-9. UMW trimmed the deficit to three at 15-12, and scored three straight to cut the deficit to one at 17-16. UMW assumed the lead at 19-18, and used kills from sophomore Leslie Walters and senior Emma Olson to capture the second, 26-24.
UMW gained control in the third after eight ties and five lead changes in the progression of the set, coming back from a 22-20 deficit to win, 25-23, keyed by five straight kills from freshman Peyton Dunow.
The action continued to go back and forth in the fourth, with Washington gaining a 5-3 edge before UMW reeled off three straight to take a 6-5 edge. A run from the Bears gave them a 10-7 lead, but the Eagles were able to tie the score at 11-11.
Four straight Bear points gave them a 15-11 lead, but again the resilient Eagles responded, tying the score at 19-19 on an attack error. Wash U regained the lead and held on for a 25-23 win to send the game to a fifth set.
In the fifth, Washington jumped out to a 6-2 lead and never trailed, as an Olson kill cut the margin to 10-7, but UMW would come no closer in a 15-9 defeat.
Hendricks led UMW with 20 kills, while Dunow scored 13 kills and 19 digs. Savannah Powers had 12 kills and 12 digs, and Olson had six kills, 59 assists, and 15 digs.
UMW equalled the best finish ever by a Capital Athletic Conference team, equalling Christopher Newport in 2014.