As the George Mason girls volleyball team’s season came to a close with 20 games in the season, they ended it with a strong record of 15-5. In the postseason, they made it to the first round of the Region Tournament, and were eliminated in the same round as last year.
“I think that we were just more of a team this year than any other year,” said Rodock.
Rodock, along with senior Kate Karstens, was awarded All-Conference and All-District honors. Karstens also made 1st team All-Region and 2nd team All-State.
The turning point of the season, according to some of the players, was sixth game of the season, when Mason went up against Riverside on their home court after losing to them earlier in the season.
“Of course we wanted to beat them this time around so we worked our butts off during practices and those games in between,” Dilao said. “We were fluid on the court, communicating exceptionally well, trusting one another to do our jobs, and just all around having a great time.”
Despite their 1-3 loss in late September, the Lady Mustangs proved their hunger for revenge and took them in four sets, following their four game winning streak.
“At that point, I could see how far we’d come as a team and was more optimistic than ever about where our potential could bring us,” Dilao said.
Coach Trebles had a different game in mind.
“I would probably say our tournament at Jeb Stuart, last year we didn’t do very well there and this year I think the girls really rallied, and we went on a big winning streak after that,” said varsity volleyball coach Hillary Trebels.
Their winning streak ran almost an entire month; from their matchup against Strasburg in late August, to their away game versus Madison County in late September. However their run split in a close challenge facing Rappahannock County, 2016 State Champions and longtime rivals for the volleyball program.
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Great expectations await the varsity volleyball team for next year, as 11 out of 14 players will be returning and numerous JV players will be eligible to play at the varsity level.
“The girls that are going to be leading the team next year I think they’ve seen, from these past two seasons, what a good season can be like and what a bad season can be like. I [also] feel like this season, as senior captains [we] have shown [them] how to make the season good,” Rodock said.
