The William & Mary volleyball team took on Georgia State Friday morning in the first match of the Belmont Bruiser Showcase, coming up just shy in a 3-0 setback.  The Tribe moves to 1-3 on the year, while the Panthers improved to 3-1 overall.

"We fought hard in the first set and then started struggling, passing-wise, and were out of system a lot," said coach Melissa Ferris after the match.  "Moving forward we need to take care of the first touch better so we can run our offense.  Tonight will be a wonderful opportunity to rebound and play Tribe volleyball."

Leading the way for W&M was freshman Alex Stein (East Setauket, N.Y.), who came on midway through the second set and played brilliantly.  She finished with eight kills on a .238 attack, and also had a solo block and five digs in just over a set-and-a-half of action.  Her classmate Casey Foote (Prospect, Ky.) continued her impressive start to the year with six kills nd 11 digs, adding in a block and an ace as well.  Junior Sydney Biniak (Elkridge, Md.) earned her first start and first action of the year and made six more kills, while sophomore Heather Pippus (Lake Oswego, Ore.) paired five kills and five digs.

Also of note, freshman Autumn Brenner (McLean, Va.) continued to play strongly at setter with 28 assists, two blocks, and an ace, and junior Paige Humphrey (Oak Hill, Va.) also chipped in with a pair of blocks.  Away from the net, senior Gabrielle Pe (Virginia Beach, Va.) had a team-best 12 digs, and junior Sara Zumbach (Franklin, Tenn.) had eight more digs and an ace playing in front of her hometown fans.  Freshman Samantha Conway (Mechanicsville, Va.) rounded out the notables, coming off the bench to provide six more digs and an ace.

William & Mary will play again tonight, taking on tournament host Belmont at 7 p.m. Eastern (6 p.m. Central).  The match can be watched live online over the OVC Digital Network.