FAIRFAX, Va. – La Salle returned to winning ways in conference play on Saturday night, defeating George Mason in four sets. The Explorers' win signaled a season sweep of the Patriots and extended their winning streak to four games over George Mason, dating back to 2017. Senior Kathryn Wood followed up her 53-assist night against George Washington with 49 dishes a day later, while classmate Catherine Edgington was tied for the game-high in kills with 15.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The two teams were locked in to begin with, trading points up until 5-5. The Explorers embarked on a seven-point run that George Mason answered with a four-point swing of its own. La Salle took five of the next seven points to go up six, after which never really allowing the Patriots to get within striking distance. The Blue & Gold would get up 18-14, at which point they would close the first set on a 7-3 run.
• The second frame was one of the most consistently close sets of the entire season. Until the dying stages, the biggest lead from either side was two: Mason was up 4-2, 5-3, 9-7 and 13-11, while La Salle led at 19-17 and 21-19. At that point, the Patriots struck back to shave the Explorers lead to one, but a kill and two aces from Wood, plus a kill from senior Devin Corah gave La Salle the set.
• The home side answered back in emphatic fashion in the third set, building a 13-3 lead. La Salle would attempt to dig itself out of the hole with runs of four points, three points and three points unanswered, the latter of which narrowed the gap to 19-13. However, George Mason would finish strongly, tallying six of the final seven points.
• Despite how the third ended, La Salle began the fourth on the front foot, getting up as many as six points in the early going. The Blue & Gold managed to hold off George Mason until 15-9, after which the home team began to climb back. An 8-3 Patriots' run shrunk La Salle's lead to one, but the Explorers then nudged out in front by taking four of the next six points. A 22-19 advantage would be brought back down to one, but kills from juniors Samantha Graver and Reilly Lowe, plus an attacking error by George Mason meant a win for the Explorers.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Doubly good from Wood: La Salle's number three recorded her fourth straight double-double with 49 assists and 16 digs. She also added a pair of aces and a season-high four kills.
• Over that four-game period, Wood has averaged 51.8 assists and 13 digs.
• With 15 kills, Edgington has four consecutive games in doble digits, while also averaging three total blocks per game over that time. Out of those four games, the contest against George Mason was her highest kill tally and her most efficient with a .323 hitting percentage.
• Freshmen fantastic: rookies Marisa Guisti and Rachel Hess made their mark on Mason. Guisti in particular was incredibly efficient on the attack, recording 11 kills on .375 hitting, while also adding two blocks. Hess was second on the team with 14 digs and added two aces.
• Edgington, Guisti and Graver were the three Explorers with double-digit kills. For Graver, her 11 kills marks six straight games in double figures.
• Redshirt freshman Sarah Nahas also had a solid game; she checked in as the third Explorer with double-digit digs. Her tally of 13 was second-most in her career, while also adding two aces.
• La Salle again came away on top of most statistical categories, winning in points, kills, aces, assists and digs. In particular, the Explorers out-assisted the Patriots 52-38.

UP NEXT

• La Salle returns to Tom Gola Arena next weekend for conference battles against Davidson on Friday and VCU on Sunday.