The William & Mary volleyball team pulled off its second big win of the weekend on Sunday, rallying past UNCW 3-2 at Kaplan Arena to complete an undefeated week in the Colonial Athletic Association.  The Tribe improved to 8-11 overall and 2-4 in league play with the win, while the Seahawks fell to 12-6 on the year, and an identical 2-4 CAA record.

"This team showed grit and a lot of determination this weekend and I'm proud of them," said head coach Melissa Ferris after the win.  "Once again it was a total team effort.  I'm really proud of how well the middles played, they got up every time and really made the middles on the other side work.  At the end of the day, no one gave up and they were all in.  I truly believe this weekend was a turning point for this team and program, and I look forward to the future with them!"

W&M had a number of outstanding individual performances, all of which were crucial to earning the win.  Freshmen Casey Foote (Prospect, Ky.) and Autumn Brenner (McLean, Va.) both recorded double-doubles on the day, Foote earning hers with a team-high 14 kills and 10 digs, along with an ace and a block.  Meanwhile, Brenner dished out 41 assists and also had 17 digs, two blocks, two aces, and four kills.  Junior Paige Humphrey (Oak Hill, Va.) hit .290 was 12 more kills and a pair of blocks, and sophomore Katie Primatic (Pittstown, N.J.) hit 10 kills and a match-high seven blocks.

The Tribe also had three players all eclipse the 20-dig mark.  Junior Sara Zumbach (Franklin, Tenn.) led the way with a match-high 27 digs, six assists, and an ace, while senior Gabrielle Pe (Virginia Beach, Va.) made 23 digs and two aces.  Freshman Samantha Conway (Mechanicsville, Va.) had another 22 digs to go with a service ace, a season-high for the rookie.  Her classmate Alex Stein (East Setauket, N.Y.) contributed eight kills and three blocks, and junior Sydney Biniak (Elkridge, Md.) added in another nine kills, three digs, and a block.  Rounding out the contributors were junior Austyn Ames (Wichita, Kan.) and senior Stephanie Paul (North Bethesda, Md.), who combined for seven digs and an assist.

After UNCW took the first set 25-16, the Tribe showed great resilience in coming back in the second.  A kill by Foote broke a 5-5 tie early, and Pe took over to serve out a 7-1 run that included both of her aces.  With the Tribe in front by six, the team played keep-away, holding the Seahawks at arms length the rest of the way en route to a 25-21 win.  The second set alone included six of the nine blocks on the night.  UNCW came back to take the third set, 25-18, and once again W&M proved it was worthy with a rally in the fourth.  The Green and Gold slowly built out a 16-12 lead, forcing a UNCW timeout, and out of the break Conway served three-straight points to open the largest lead of the set, 19-12.  The Seahawks responded with a small run of their own to get back within three, 19-16, but a mishit gave the Tribe the opening it needed to bring Ames into the service game.  She oversaw another 3-0 run, and after Foote gave W&M set point at 24-19, Humphrey and Biniak combined on a huge block to win the set and force the tiebreak.

The fifth set , as it often does, proved a microcosm of the entire match.  The visiting team jumped out to an early 5-2 lead, but consecutive kills by Biniak and Primatic halted the bleeding, and after another UNCW error, Stein put the Tribe in front for the first time, and for good as it turned out, 6-5.  The Seahawks battled back for a tie at 6-6 and 8-8, but Primatic and Foote had back-to-back kills to reopen the lead 10-8.  The final challenge came on a UNCW ace to retie the set, 12-12, and force W&M's final timeout.  As she had all weekend, Biniak put the team on her shoulder and came out of the timeout with an emphatic kill, and followed with another right away to gain match-point, 14-12.  UNCW was able to stave off the first point with a kill, but Humphrey would not be denied on the second attempt and slammed a cross-court winner to claim the victory.

William & Mary heads back on the road this weekend, traveling to Delaware for a Friday night match, Oct. 14, at 7 p.m., and continuing on to face Towson on Sunday at 1 p.m.