ATLANTA--Redshirt junior Ana Paula Ferreira had a triple-double as Georgia State won its 12th consecutive league opener with a 3-2 (34-32, 27-30, 22-30, 30-25, 15-11) over William & Mary Friday night at the Sports Arena.
"This was a gutty all-around team effort," said head coach Mike Webster. "William & Mary did an outstanding job defensively, but we were able to pull it out in the end."
Ferreira had 16 kills 15 digs, and 10 total blocks for the Panthers, her fourth career triple-double. Junior Amy Lusk had 15 kills and 29 digs for the Panthers, and senior Christen Garcia had 26 kills to go along with two clutch service aces in the fourth game to help the Panthers get that important frame.
State and the Tribe had a classic battle in the first game, with both teams fighting off game points before the Panthers walked off the court in game one winners. The Panthers had a game point at 31-30, but the Tribe saved one game point. Then up 32-31, the Tribe could not capitalize as Ferreira had a kill to even the score at 32-all. A ball handling error by the Tribe made it 33-32, and the Panthers took game one thanks to a kill by Noelle Boyd via a blocking error.
The Tribe went on a 6-0 run late in game two to take a 27-20 lead. While the Panthers came back, it would not be enough as an Abbi Owens kill gave the visitors game two 30-27. Game three was almost all Tribe as the visitors went on a 12-6 spurt to close the game out 30-22.
But the fourth game was a back-and-forth affair that was even after the first 48 points. But the Panthers made it 27-25 and then used a hitting error and Garcia's two aces to get the win and even the match.
William & Mary led the final game as the teams traded sides in the fifth game, 8-7. But the Panthers came back to tie the game at 9-all, then scored the next four points to seize control. Sophomore Liz Schaab had back-to-back kills (giving her 10 on the match) to make it 13-9. After a Tribe point, junior Marissa Levasseur seized the moment to attack the ball home on the other side to make it 14-10. The Tribe fought off one match point, but Ferreira's 16th and final kill gave State a 15-11 win in the game.
The Panthers will return to action Sunday against Virginia Commonwealth. Match time is set for 2:00 p.m.
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