The William & Mary volleyball team scored a huge win Friday night at Kaplan Arena, handing league-leading College of Charleston its first loss of the conference season by a 3-1 score.  The Tribe improved to 7-11 overall and 1-4 in the Colonial Athletic Association with the win, while the Cougars fell to 11-6 (4-1 CAA).

"When I think of this team," commented head coach Melissa Ferris after the match, "the word perseverance comes to mind.  They have never given up and they keep fighting and tonight it paid off.  I couldn't be more proud of this team if I tried.  I genuinely cannot say we won because of one person's play.  Tonight was a total team effort and everyone made great adjustments and never gave up."

The first set saw Charleston slowly pull out to a 16-12 lead, but junior Sydney Biniak (Elkridge, Md.) got the Tribe off and running to an 8-0 streak.  The line of points also included three blocks in four points by Biniak and sophomore Katie Primatic (Pittstown, N.J.), with Biniak making another kill for the fourth point in that run.  That flipped the switch on the set and the night, and W&M was able to comfortably put the win away, 25-20.  The second set saw COFC jump out to a big lead early, and they held it over the course of the frame until its largest gap, 21-12, forced W&M to take its final timeout.  Primatic delivered out of the huddle with a kill, and then two more blocks and another kill to help W&M cut the deficit to six, 23-17, before Charleston eventually prevailed, 25-19.

In the third set, it was W&M's turn for the quick start, jumping in front 8-3 after two aces from freshman Autumn Brenner (McLean, Va.) as well as two blocks.  The Cougars battled back, however, slowly making up ground and taking their first lead at 22-21 on an ace, prompting another Tribe timeout.  Once again the brief breather was exactly what the doctor ordered, with kills from Paige Humphrey (Oak Hill, Va.) and Alex Stein (East Setauket, N.Y.) sandwiched around a Charleston error to flip the lead back in favor of the home team and give W&M set-point, 24-22.  One final gasp from the visitors was for naught, as Biniak hit another punishing kill to claim the win, 25-23.  Sticking with the theme of the night, the Cougars exploded in the start of the fourth set with a big run, and found themselves in front 9-3.  The fun was just starting, however, as W&M put Gabrielle Pe (Virginia Beach, Va.) on the service line and she sent the Tribe off on a wild 10-0 run, punctuated by a block from Primatic and Brenner to go ahead 13-9.  COFC would respond with a small run of their own to close within one at 16-15, but a final judicious timeout once again calmed the waters, and Biniak came out with two kills and a block alongside Humphrey to go back up by four, 19-15.  A final gasp of four-straight kills for Charleston brought them within one once again, 21-20, but again Biniak turned the tide with her 16th and final kill of the night.  The Cougars kept sticking around, trading points with the Tribe as Casey Foote (Prospect, Ky.) scored to gain set point, and then finished the night and the Green and Gold victory with her 15th kill, 25-23.

For the night, the Tribe set a season-high with 13 blocks to down Charleston for the first time in school history.  That total included eight from Primatic and seven by Biniak, as well as three from Humphrey and two each to Foote, Brenner, and senior Kristen Larrick (Bethesda, Md.).  Biniak led all players on the night with 16 kills and a .333 attack, with Foote coming close to a double-double with 15 kills and nine digs.  Brenner did accomplish her double-double, pairing 40 assists and 10 digs to go along with her two kills, two blocks, and two service aces.  Primatic added in seven kills to go with her eight blocks, and Stein had six more kills.  Away from the net, junior Sara Zumbach (Franklin, Tenn.) led all players with 24 digs and an ace, and Pe had 13 digs and another ace.

William & Mary is back on the court on Sunday, hosting UNCW at 2 p.m.