BOSTON ? Trailing 2-0, the Georgia State volleyball team mounted an impressive comeback to force a decisive game five against Northeastern. Unfortunately for the Panthers' Colonial Athletic Association Tournament hopes, State dropped the final game to fall 3-2 (27-30, 18-30, 30-24, 30-26, 12-15) to the Huskies.
The teams traded points early in the first game, until Northeastern (16-13, 9-3 CAA) went on a 6-0 run to take 15-9 lead. Georgia State drew within two at 19-17 with a 4-1 spurt, as the Panthers gained points from an Ana Paula Ferreira service ace and a kill from Liz Schaab along with a pair of Husky errors. After NU extended its lead to five, 22-17, State battled back again and closed the margin to two at 27-25 following a kill from Emily Dewey. The Panthers later close the gap to a pair of points, 29-27, but were unable to draw any closer as the Huskies close the game on a kill from Jill Robinson.
Georgia State (15-14, 5-8 CAA) opened the second game strong, building a 9-4 lead. During the sequence, the Panthers got solid service from Schaab, who recorded an ace. State used a balanced offense, getting kills from four different players: Jocelyn Waldern, Ferreira, Dewey and Michelle Trimble, who was the only Panther to register more than one kill in that exchange. Georgia State later extended its lead to serve, 12-5, after a service ace from Dewey. However, the Huskies answered with a 14-0 run later to take a 22-13 advantage. State finally forced a sideout when Noelle Boyd converted a pass from Ferreira for a kill. With an eight-point lead after the sideout, NU finished the game with an 8-4 advantage to claim a 30-18 win in game two.
After the third game opened with a tight score, the Huskies rode a 6-0 run to a 9-5 lead. With the deficit at four, the Panthers used a 6-0 spurt of their own with Marissa Levasseur serving to take a 14-12 advantage. State later used an 8-0 run with Boyd serving, including three aces from the sophomore setter, to take a 25-16 lead. Dewey sealed the game-three win for the Panthers with a kill, as State won 30-24.
Northeastern used a 5-0 run early in game four to take a 10-4 lead, but Georgia State stayed close and eventually tied the frame at 20-all after a NU attacking error. Down by one, 26-25, the Panthers close the game with a 5-0 run to force game five. State started its game-ending run with a service ace from Ferreira and rode three consecutive NU attacking errors to game point before a combined block from Rachel Boryc and Trimble sealed the win.
In the deciding game, NU jumped out to a 7-2 lead with Britney Brown recording three kills during a 4-0 run for the Huskies. State kept battling, tying the decisive game at 11 with a 5-0 spurt. Unfortunately, Northeastern closed the game and match with a 4-1 run.
“I'm proud of how the team fought back after getting into a hole. It shows the players have pride in themselves and what they can accomplish. If a couple of calls had gone a different way, we could have won the match,” said head coach Mike Webster. “We did a good job of settling down after the second game and continuing to fight. It was a good effort all around.”
Two Panthers finished with double-doubles, as Boyd contributed 37 assists and dug up 11 NU attacks while Dewey notched career-highs with 15 kills and 26 digs. Trimble added 11 kills as Audrey Cantrell recorded a career-best 25 digs.
The loss eliminates the Panthers from contention for one of six spots in the CAA Tournament. If sixth-place Hofstra (14-11, 6-5 CAA) finishes its season with three straight losses, State would lose the tiebreaker after dropping the season series 2-0 to HU.
Georgia State plays its regular-season finale on the road next Saturday, Nov. 10, against CAA rival UNC Wilmington at 2 p.m.
