by Matthew Hochberg

George Mason’s High School girls’ varsity volleyball suffered just its second defeat of the season on Sept. 28, losing to Rappahannock County on the road in five sets. It was a back-and-forth affair, with the Panthers taking an early lead before the Mustangs tied it at two sets apiece. Rappahannock, however, managed to take the final game of the match in front of their home crowd.

“Rappahannock a really tough place to play. It’s a small gym and there was a big crowd. We also made some silly mistakes, we were trying to do too much at times and were a bit overzealous,” head coach Hillary Trebels said. “We really wanted to win.”

Despite the loss, Mason managed to bounce back at home on Tuesday night, defeating Clarke County in three straight sets and improving to an impressive 8-2 on the season.
Trebels was encouraged by the play of her squad, which had solid play offensively and defensively, keeping their opponents scrambling.

“Evelyn DuRoss stepped up big as she had to play front row which she normally doesn’t do and quarterbacked our offense on her own,” Trebels said regarding the sophomore setter.

Seniors Shaun Rodock and Dre Dilao stood out on the defensive side while senior setter Kate Karstens emerged as the match’s top hitter.

Sophomore hitters McKenzie Brady and Riley Ruyak were able to keep Clarke’s defense unbalanced, mixing up their shots and keeping the opponent guessing.

While the team has been very successful so far this season, Trebels already has one specific game she is eyeing later in the season.

“I’m really looking forward to playing Rappahannock at home, on our Senior Night. They finished us off last week.”

Mason’s next match is Thursday, Oct. 6 against Warren County High School at home.