AIRFAX, Va. -- A long day of two matches stretching over 11 hours for the Navy volleyball team ended with the Mids battling throughout a five-set defeat to Quinnipiac and a four-set loss to George Mason, Friday at the George Mason Invite in Fairfax, Va.  The Mids fell to the Bobcats, 25-15, 26-24, 17-25, 26-28, 15-13, and to the Patriots, 25-16, 25-16, 23-25, 25-21.

Quinnipiac 3, Navy 2
Set One
The score was tied at 6-6 when Quinnipiac opened up a 15-8 lead.

Set Two
The score was tied 12 times, but changed hands just twice.

Quinnipiac took a 21-18 lead only to see Navy tie the score at 22-22.  The teams traded kills (23-23), then a Navy setting error took the Bobcats to set point with a 24-23 lead.  A Quinnipiac attack error extended the match (24-24), but a kill by the Bobcats (25-24) followed by a kill gave them the second set.

Each team had 12 kills in the set, with Doris Nelson recorded four for the Mids.  Navy also played a much cleaner set as it registered only four attack errors and a .200 hitting percentage to nine errors and a .077 mark for Quinnipiac.  

Set Three
The frame started close, then Navy went on a 5-0 run to take a 16-11 lead.  Quinnipiac scored next two points (16-13), then the Mids scored the ensuing four points to stretch their cushion to 20-13.

Navy hit .289 in the set and held Quinnipiac to a mark of .111.  Anuhea Hauanio-Lore posted four kills in the set for the Mids.

Set Four
The Mids were able to open up a 13-8 lead, but saw the Bobcats tie the score at 15-15.  The score would be tied at both 16-16 and 17-17, then Navy took a 20-17 advantage.  It quickly was a two-point set at 21-19, then Quinnipiac tied the score at 22-22.  An attack error by the Bobcats and a kill by Navy's Lilly Lutz took the Mids to set point with a 24-22 lead.  Back-to-back Quinnipiac kills tied the stanza at 24-24.  

Navy again would serve for the set following a Quinnipiac attack error, but a miscue by the Mids tied the score at 25-25.  Hauanio-Lore posted another kill to give the Mids a 26-25 lead.  A Navy service error tied the score for the eighth time, then a service error by the Bobcats gave the Mids a 27-26 lead and their five set point of the frame.  A bad set by Quinnipiac sent the match to a fifth set.

Nelson, Hauanio-Lore and Ava Toppin all had three kills for Navy in the fourth set.  

Set Five
The abbreviated set would be tied six times and the lead would be exchanged on six occasions.

The teams were knotted at 9-9 when Quinnipiac scored the next four points to take a 13-9 lead.  Navy battled back and closed to within one point at 13-12.  A kill by the Bobcats gave them the chance to serve for the set.  Nelson extended the match with a kill, then a Quinnipiac kill ended the proceedings.

Each team had seven kills in the set, but Quinnipiac hit .294 and Navy hit .091.

"There is a lot to be proud of from the match," said Navy head coach Paco Labrador.  "Anytime a team can fight back after losing the first two sets to force a fifth set, you know that at their core they are competitors.  It was the first fifth set for many of these players and I thought we handled it well."

Inside the Numbers
Each team finished the two and one-half hour match with 53 kills and 12 aces.  Navy hit slightly better, .155-.142, and held an 11-8 lead in blocks.  The Mids committed 15 service errors to 10 for the Bobcats, and Quinnipiac held an 85-75 advantage in digs.

Nelson and Toppin each posted 12 kills and Hauanio-Lore finished with 10 kills.  Toppin added six blocks and Hauanio-Lore snared 10 digs.  Pacing the Navy passers was Hannah Hoover with 18 digs.  Farrah Eike and Isa Boyd each were credited with four aces.

"Basic math is hurting us right now with allowing an experienced Quinnipiac team to serve 12 aces while we commit 15 service errors," said Labrador.  "We are trying a few different approaches with our serving mentality and we will keep working to retain the skills we train on during the week.  Ava and Doris are playing the most physical games on the team right now.  They were terminal when we needed them."

George Mason 3, Navy 1
Set One
Navy's 150-minute match against Quinnipiac ended at 12:30 p.m.  There was no rest for the weary as the Mids were back on the court at 7 p.m for the start of its match against a George Mason team that last played Thursday night when it lost a five-set match to Old Dominion.

The Patriots jumped out to a 13-5 lead at the start of the set and the Mids could not climb out of that deficit.

Set Two
The Patriots again had a strong start to the set as they took an 8-1 lead.  The Mids drew to within four points on four occasions, including at 16-12.  George Mason responded with a 7-0 run to build a 23-12 cushion.

Set Three
The teams were tied at 6-6 when the Patriots opened up an 11-6 lead.  The Mids were able to close to within two points at 12-10, but a 3-0 George Mason run stretched the margin to 15-10.  Back came Navy and soon it was a one-point margin at 16-15.  The teams traded sideouts (17-16) then an ace by Ava Toppin tied the score at 17-17.

Once again the teams exchanged points (18-18), then a bad set by the Patriots gave Navy a 19-18 lead.  The Mids committed a service error (19-19), which was followed by a Navy attack error that gave George Mason a 20-19 lead.  After a Navy timeout, Julia Humphrey recorded a kill to tie the frame at 20-20.

The Patriots recorded a sideout on a kill (21-20), but the longest point of the match ended with an attack error by the home team which tied the score again at 21-21.  Katie Jackowski tallied a kill on the next point to put Navy in front, 22-21.  This led to a George Mason timeout.  The Patriots notched a kill to tie the score at 22-22, but a George Mason service error put the Mids in front, 23-22.

George Mason quickly recorded a kill to again tie the score, with Jackowski breaking the tie on a kill.  A block by the tandem of Toppin and Arleigh Hanson gave the third set to Navy.

Set Four
The Mids had another slow start to the frame as the Patriots took a 7-2 lead.  Navy was able to make it a three-point margin at 8-5 before falling behind by as many as eight points at 15-8.  The Mids slowly chipped away and made it a four-point game at 17-13, then closed to within one point at 21-20.  The teams exchange points (22-21) and Navy had a swing to tie the set but the attempt by Grace Burgoyne was blocked and fell just inside of the sideline to double the George Mason lead to 23-21.  A kill by the Patriots and a miscue with the ball on the Navy side of the court ended the match more than two hours after it began.

"George Mason is a really solid team at every position," said Labrador.  "They really don't have a weak position on the floor.  When you have that level of consistency, you can run away with sets.  We gave up runs of points too often, especially on the road with a gym full of opposing fans."

Inside the Numbers
Much of the statistical advantages for George Mason in the match came as it accumulated the 2-0 lead in sets.  At the end of the evening, the Patriots led Navy in kills (56-37), hitting percentage (.287-.124), aces (9-7) digs (52-45).  Navy led in blocks (9-6) and had five fewer service errors (13-8).

Toppin and Jackowski each posted seven kills to share the lead for the Navy offense. Toppin also contributed three blocks to finish one behind the four tallied by Humphrey.  Hoover led the back row defense with 10 digs.

"We had another great contribution from our game changers," said Labrador.  "Kaite Jackowski made a huge impact when she entered the match.  She executed our game plan and brought some energy to the team."

Up Next
Navy will be back on the court in a matter of hours for an 11:30 a.m. match against Old Dominion.