Setters pick up double-doubles, Lunsford hits double digits as Bulldogs take down host Patriots Friday at Mason Invitational

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Junior Ally Lunsford (Minneola, Fla.) posted 10 kills and a match-best five blocks while setters Vika Katzen (Kfar Saba, Israel) and Kirstyn Sperry (Phoenix, Ariz.) each registered double-doubles as the Bryant University volleyball team opened Mason Invitational action with a 3-1 win over host George Mason Friday night.

Lunsford's 10 kills came with a .381 attack percentage to pace the contest for both sides. Senior captain Sara DePouw (Oconto, Wis.) added nine more kills for the Bulldogs (6-8) while junior libero Erica Vendituoli (Nashua, N.H.) posted a team-leading 16 digs. Sperry dished out 23 assists with 15 digs, numbers that were complemented by five kills and three blocks in another strong all-around performance, while Katzen finished the night with 18 dimes, 12 digs and seven kills.

The Patriots (2-9) saw Sydney Fanoga and Mikala Wells post match highs with 12 kills apiece, but 29 attack errors and nine service miscues doomed the hosts in the four-set match. Caitlyn Hipsher doled out 34 of the team's 41 assists, while Wells added 16 digs for the only double-double on the Patriots' stat sheet. Catie Espinoza grabbed a match-best 17 digs.

After a solid start from the Black and Gold – a 25-16 set-one victory – George Mason came storming back to tie the match at 1-1 with a 25-19 win in the second frame.

Set three saw the Bulldogs lead from start to finish, including six-straight points to end the stanza for a 25-15 final margin. The Patriots had more errors (10) than kills (7) on offense and could not contain Lunsford, who saw half of her final kill total come in the third frame alone. The Bulldogs made just five mistakes on the attack, finishing with a .235 hitting percentage, the team's best of the night.

In the fourth, George Mason opened up a 9-4 advantage early on, but Bryant would close that gap to a single point, 12-11, quickly by virtue of Patriot missteps. The home side would regain a three-point lead at 18-15, but a kill by junior Kiley Robbins (Garland, Texas) (7 kills) and two more George Mason errors knotted the set at 18-18.

Bryant took its first lead of the frame on the next point thanks to a Wells attack error, and back-to-back Robbins kills followed by one from rookie Ava Patterson (Danville, Calif.) (7 kills) would run the lead to 22-18 in the Bulldogs' favor. Two more Patriot errors set up match point for the Black and Gold, who would need three attempts before making the 3-1 score final with a 25-20 set-three win.

With the victory, the Bulldogs earn their first winning streak of the 2016 season, a run they will look to build on in a Saturday doubleheader against Loyola (11 a.m.) and Hampton (4:30 p.m.). Fans can follow the action with live stats at bryantbulldogs.com.