WASHINGTON - Behind a double-double for freshman
Zedo Yilmaz and 16 kills for junior
Adelina Berisha, the American University volleyball team took care of business with a 3-0 sweep at Georgetown in the Eagles' 2024 season opener. AU won 25-21, 25-23 and 25-17 against the Hoyas, who had beaten the Eagles in five sets a year ago.
Notable
- The debut outing was an impressive one for Yilmaz, who added a match-high 15 digs to 14 kills while hitting .313.
- Senior Lilou Stegeman posted seven kills on 13 attacks, hitting .385, while also tying sophomore Sofia Osterdahl for team-high honors with three blocks.
- Berisha added seven digs to her match-high 16 kills, and senior Bridget Javitch posted nine digs.
- With 29 assists to lead AU, senior Esma Sipahi now stands just 65 assists away from 2,000 in her career.
- Freshman Elise Sterling got a starting nod in her first match and hit .333 with three kills and zero errors along with two blocks.
How it Happened
- The first set was a tight one most of the way, and Georgetown was within a point at 22-21. From there, American closed it out with three straight points thanks to a Yilmaz kill, an attack error on the Hoyas, and a final kill from Stegeman.
- Stegeman finished the opening set with four kills on six attacks with zero errors, while Yilmaz and Berisha led AU with five kills each.
- The Eagles were out-hit .324 to .293 in set one, but came up with 18 kills compared to Georgetown's 14.
- Berisha came up with eight more kills in the second set, including a string of four that gave AU an 18-13 lead.
- From there, the Hoyas rallied to lead 20-19. American rallied four straight times to tie the score, twice on Yilmaz kills and the final time on a Stegeman kill to tie it at 23-23.
- The Hoyas were charged with a bad set in giving AU a 24-23 lead, and Berisha's final kill of the set ended it in a 25-23 win for the Eagles.
- American raced out to a 12-3 lead in the third set thanks to four kills and a block from Yilmaz.
- Georgetown used a 4-0 run to cut an eight-point deficit to four points at 21-17, but the Hoyas would come no closer.
- Berisha's final kill put the Eagles up 23-17, an attack error on the Hoyas made it match-point, and Sipahi served up an ace for the victory.
Next Up
- American will begin its home slate in Bender Arena with a pair of matches on Saturday, Aug. 31. The Eagles will take on George Mason at noon, and UC Riverside at 6 p.m.
Keep Up With Us
