Friday, Nov. 1 and Saturday, Nov. 2, William and Mary women’s volleyball (8-15, 4-10 CAA) lost to Hofstra (15-8, 11-3 CAA) in a Coastal Athletic Association matchup at Kaplan Arena in Williamsburg, Va.
The Tribe entered the match off the back of a loss to North Carolina Wilmington, when senior setter Amy Schwem earned her 2000th career assist. Head coach Ryan Adams gifted Schwem a golden ball before Friday’s game.
“She’s been around for a long time,” Adams said. “She’s been a pivotal part in us getting better over the years. So, it’s just a huge accomplishment and it’s exciting.”
Hofstra came into Friday’s match as part of a four-way tie atop the CAA, averaging 17.55 points per set and 13.02 assists per set.
The first set began with back-and-forth action. The Tribe led the Pride only twice in the set, once off a kill by sophomore opposite Katherine Arnason — who led the team in scoring on the day — to make the score 3-2. From there, however, the Tribe relinquished the lead. The Green and Gold kept a tight game with several emphatic plays, including a sprawling block by junior middle blocker Olivia Esposito to even the score at 10-10. Esposito added another booming kill to bring the scores within one at 12-11, though the Pride ended the game with relative ease, outscoring the Green and Gold 13-10 to take a 1-0 set lead.
The second set also gave the Pride some challenges. The Green and Gold jumped out to a quick 4-2 lead, spearheaded by a massive block by Arnason on the first play of the set. Afterward, it was another back-and-forth battle, with the Tribe leading by two at 14-12 before Hofstra turned things around and grabbed a 20-16 lead. The Tribe evened things up at 21-21 off a wide-open kill by sophomore outside hitter Audrey Brcka. However, Hofstra pulled away for the final time to take set two at 25-22.
The final set of day one was all Hofstra. After another close start, the Pride quickly jumped to a 13-6 lead before a Tribe timeout. From there, the Tribe only mustered up another four points, with the Pride going on a nine-point scoring run to end a disappointing day.
Hofstra junior outside hitter Izadora Stedile led day one in scoring, earning a total of 12.5 points. Arnason led the home side with nine kills and two blocks. Schwem added another 14 assists to her tally. Hofstra outpaced the Tribe in almost every category, leading in kills at 50-31, service aces at 3-2 and set assists at 48-29. Both teams tied in blocks at 6.0 apiece.
Set one on Saturday kicked off with another close start. Sophomore middle blocker Amber Jarecki-Meyers earned her first kill of the season, and each side traded blows in a tight 10-10 opening. Brcka also recorded two aces early on, her first two of the year. The Tribe would then race to a 18-13 lead off of multiple Hofstra errors before squandering the advantage and giving up seven straight points. This momentum swing proved pivotal for the Pride, and the visitors retained the lead for the rest of the set, triumphing at 25-21.
The following set saw much of the same, with both teams playing close before the Pride picked the Tribe apart. Led by a service ace from Hofstra freshman right-side hitter Constanza Perez Sain, the Pride backed the Green and Gold against a wall to end the second set, scoring another seven unanswered and cruising to a 25-15 win.
In the third and final set of the day, Hofstra took an early 2-0 lead and never looked back, powered by a six-point run. Perez Sain added one more kill to her impressive day on the final play, sealing the Tribe’s 25-18 defeat.
“I think we fought hard and well throughout the whole thing,” Adams said after Saturday’s loss. “They’re a good team, and they have a lot of strong attackers.”.
Junior opposite Nicole Smith led the Tribe with 9 total points on day two, and Arnason picked up another 8.5. Brcka’s two aces proved to be the Tribe’s only two on the day. Schwem added another 14 assists, with senior setter Bella Easton tallying another 11 for the Green and Gold. Perez Sain paced the Pride in total points, earning 13.5, while Hoftstra senior setter Beatriz Alves earned 23 assists.
The Tribe once again trailed in team statistics, earning 31 kills to Hofstra’s 48, 27 digs to Hofstra’s 41 and two aces to Hofstra’s nine.
The Tribe looks to get back in the win column against Elon (5-22, 2-16 CAA) Saturday, Nov. 9 and Sunday, Nov. 10 at Schar Center in Elon, N.C.
“Every weekend is another opportunity to get better, so we’re just looking forward to competing,” Adams said.