NORFOLK, Va. – Old Dominion volleyball opened its final homestand of the regular season with a win as the Monarchs defeated Georgia State, 3-0 on Thursday night at the ODU Volleyball Center.
"I was really pleased with how we executed," said head coach Fred Chao. "I've been waiting for a performance like this from our squad, and it's just great that they've put it together."
ODU 3, Georgia State 0
It was a balanced effort by the Monarchs (12-15, 4-9 Sun Belt) as the team edged GSU in points (61-26), kills (46-22), assists (41-22), service aces (6-2) and blocks (9-2). ODU combined to hit .412 as a team while holding their opponents to a .082 clip. There was also just one tie in the match and only one lead change, both in the third set.
ODU scored the first five points to begin the match, forcing an early timeout by the Panthers (5-19, 2-11). Later in the set, Teresa Atilano assisted Myah Conway to open up a 7-1 run that pushed the Monarch lead to 16-5. GSU couldn't find its rhythm and a Bailey Burgess solo block secured the first set for ODU at 25-10.
The second set looked a lot like the first as two kills from Olivia De Jesus and an ace by Atilano helped build an early 5-0 lead. The visitors kept it close and stayed within a couple points at 14-12, but ODU then rattled off six straight points to pull away, 20-12. Burgess then secured another set point at 25-16 as she put away a ball from Atilano.
GSU won the first point of the third set as Aaliyah Mitchell and Amanda Albertini recorded a block, but that would be the only lead for the Panthers in the match. De Jesus then scored a kill to tie the set at 1-1 and gave ODU the lead as she and Conway combined for a block. Multiple attack errors and some bad sets by the Panthers helped ODU extend its lead to 7-3. Elisa Maggi scored a couple kills and served an ace to highlight an 8-1 swing as the Monarchs got some separation at 17-6. GSU put together a 4-0 run to get to within 19-12, but it wouldn't be enough. Back-to-back blocks by Burgess and Conway and a solo block Burgess gave the home team the win at 25-14.
Conway swung for a .448 hitting percentage and paced the attack with 14 kills. She is now 36 kills away from reaching 1,000 for her career and she added two aces, five blocks and eight digs to her match totals. De Jesus, Maggi and Alice Munari all finished with eight kills, and Atilano turned in a 35-assist effort on the night. Burgess also finished with five blocks, two of them solo, De Jesus made four blocks, and Kate Kilpatrick ended up with a team-high 12 digs.
On senior De Jesus' performance, Chao added, "She played awesome. She really set a tone early on when she was getting blocks and making really quick, reactive plays."
Up Next
ODU and Georgia State are back on the court tomorrow on what marks Senior Day for the Monarchs. The team will recognize Tessa Mati, Atilano, Kira Smith and De Jesus in a ceremony before first serve.
"It's probably going to be a little rough for me, but hopefully they're going to enjoy it," said Chao. "Senior Night is always special, especially with such a young program and players that have done so much for us."
Monarchs Post Straight-Set Victory Over Georgia State
