Staff Writer

The Fordham women’s volleyball team’s hopes of making the Atlantic 10 conference tournament were officially squashed this past weekend, as losses on the road against George Washington and George Mason dropped the team three games out of the final spot in the tournament with only two games left to play. The Rams’ two most recent losses were the final nails in the coffin. It was ultimately losses in 10 of their last11 games that kept the Rams out of the A-10 tournament.

At George Washington on Friday, Nov. 8, the Rams struggled to keep up with one of the best teams in the A-10, falling in consecutive sets by scores of 25-12, 25-22 and 25-13. In the first set, George Washington jumped out to an early 3-0 lead before quickly expanding it to 12-3.  A 18-9 George Washington lead then quickly turned to 22-10 before they won the set 25-12.

In the second set, the Rams made things more interesting as they hung on almost point for point. Fordham had a 18-14 lead before George Washington got back into a groove that put it ahead 20-19. From there, George Washington closed out the match by a score of 25-22. In the third set, George Washington went up 6-1 early. From there, it expanded its lead to 12-3 before a 17-7 score ensured Fordham had no chance to come back, ultimately losing the third and final set 25-13.

Lisa Hipp led the Rams against George Washington with eight kills. Abigail Konovodoff led the team with 17 assists and Maria Rodenberg led with 11 digs.

On Saturday, Nov. 10, the Rams had a short travel time as they headed to Virginia to take on George Mason. Two sets went to extra points in a close battle between the two teams before George Mason won the game 3-1.

In the first set, Fordham went down 8-3 early but then went on a run to take a 15-11 lead. George Mason was down 20-15 when it made it a 20-19 game before tying things up at 23. The two teams then traded points back and forth before Fordham scored two at the end to take the 29-27 victory.

In the second set, George Mason dominated early, cruising to a 12-3 lead. The Rams scored a few more points, but George Mason got the 25-13 win. The third set saw Fordham take 11-6 and 17-12 leads before George Mason clawed its way back to tie things at 17. Things were still tied up at 23 before George Mason scored two points to win the set 25-23.

The fourth set of the game saw both teams trade points. The set was tied at eight before George Mason went on a run that put them up 11-8. Fordham then answered with a 7-1 run, getting ahead 15-12 before things tied back up at 15. The Rams went down 22-18 before coming back to tie the score up at 24. Once again, George Mason managed to get the two points it needed to win the set 26-24 and win the game.

Despite the loss, it was still a big game for Hipp, who, with her team-leading 18 kills, picked up the 1000th of her career. Hipp is the 10th player in Fordham’s history to reach the 1000 kill mark. Konovodoff led the team with 47 assists, while Rodenberg led with 21 digs.

The Rams have two games left, both on the road. On Friday, Nov. 15, they travel to La Salle to play a team they beat at home a couple of weeks ago. Then, they close out the season on Saturday, Nov. 16, at Rhode Island. The team now has a 9-19 record overall and a 2-10 record in conference play.