ATLANTA – For the second time in as many days, Old Dominion volleyball defeated Georgia State 3-1 to complete a Sun Belt Conference series sweep of the Panthers Saturday at the GSU Sports Arena.
ODU now leads the all-time series 2-0. It was also the second time this season that ODU has swept a league foe after the Monarchs bested Marshall 3-1 on Sept. 22 and 3-0 on Sept. 23.
"Tough match today and fortunate to be on the winning end," said head coach Fred Chao. "The depth of our roster was a big factor in our win. We were able to serve our way out of trouble today, and that's a nice confidence builder."
ODU 3, Georgia State 1
Myah Conway had the team high in kills with 15, Madeline Rudd added 13 and Tessa Mati posted a double-double of 11 kills and 11 digs. Teresa Atilano and Ashlynn Belcher tallied 21 assists each, while Conway served four aces and Mati served three. The Monarchs (11-14, 6-6 Sun Belt) had seven different players record multiple blocks. Olivia De Jesus led the way with five (one solo), Atilano ended up with three, and Conway, Rudd, Mati, Bailey Burgess and Hailey Duncan all had two. Anna Burkhardt led both teams with 17 digs.
ODU bested GSU in just about every category. The team comparison saw ODU leading in points (71-65), kills (51-49), service aces (10-7), blocks (10-9), assists (48-45) and digs (58-56). The Panthers (5-21, 1-13 Sun Belt) did have a higher hitting percentage though with a .237 clip compared to ODU's .188.
The Panthers broke open a close first set with 11 unanswered points for a 16-6 lead. ODU was unable to come up with any real response and the hosts took the set, 25-15. The offense woke up at the start of the second set though as aces from Belcher and Mati helped build an early 5-1 lead. Conway then provided a spark with three straight aces, capping off a 6-0 run that swelled the Monarch lead to 12-4. GSU refused to back down as the Panthers caught up at 14-14 and later jumped ahead, 21-18. But Rudd got ODU back into the set with three kills and Conway followed with another kill and an ace as the Monarchs went up 23-21. The teams exchanged points down the stretch before a GSU service error and a successful attack by Conway secured the set point at 27-25.
In Set Three, ODU trailed 9-8 when a solo block from Mati opened a 9-1 swing. The Panthers couldn't recover, and the Monarchs won another set by a tally of 25-18. ODU went down 11-6 in the fourth set, but knotted the score at 11-11, 12-12 and again at 13-13. With yet another tie at 20-20, Duncan and Atilano denied a GSU attack to start a 3-0 run that gave ODU control at 23-21. The home team won the next two points, but a Mati kill and a block assist from De Jesus and Mati brought the match to a close at 25-22.
Up Next
ODU will conclude the regular season next Thursday and Friday, Nov. 10-11 as the Monarchs welcome Southern Miss to the ODU Volleyball Center. The team will also recognize its senior class before the start of Friday's match.
Volleyball Wins 3-1 at Georgia State on Saturday
