Aug. 25, 2006

Box Score

WASHINGTON - In a seesaw season opening match that went all the way to a 14-14 tie in the fifth and decisive game, the American University women's volleyball came up just short against George Mason Friday night in Bender, dropping their first match of the 2006 season, 3-2.

"The match went back and forth, it was a test of fighting hard," head coach Barry Goldberg said. "We battled back in game five, got tied at 14, but just could not make a key play to put us over the top. I thought we needed to be a little more skilled attacking and improve our serve reception control."

The Eagles battled the Patriots point-for-point all night, winning the first and fourth games by 30-27 margins to force a fifth game clincher. It was there that AU came up just short after a tremendous rally, which saw them climb back to even at 14-14 after being down 8-3 earlier in the game. In what had been the story all night, though, the Eagles could not get over the hump as Mason scored the next two points to take the match.

Three Eagles hit for double-figure kills in the match, led by Rubena Sukaj's (Tirana, Albania/Asim Vokshi) match-high 23. Middle blocker Chelsa Brooks (Hilliard, Ohio/Hilliard Darby) filled up the stat columns with 17 kills for a .342 hitting percentage as well as three service aces and four total blocks. In addition, newcomers Ann Recht (Canby, Ore./La Salle) and Julia Borecka (Bielsko-Biala, Poland) combined for 16 kills at a .350 hitting average. Fellow freshman Ivana Cebakova (Brno, Czech Republic/Ludvika Danka) proved her mettle as libero, racking up a match-high 33 digs as the Eagles held the Patriots to .188 hitting percentage. Despite AU's strong individual play, the team's errors proved costly as it combined for 23 service errors and 10 reception errors on the match.

American returns for the second day of the D.C. Challenge tomorrow against George Washington and Georgetown at 1 and 5 p.m., respectively.