Tournament: Carolina Classic
Score: VCU 3, Colgate 2 (22-25, 25-13, 22-25, 25-19, 15-10)
Location: Chapel Hill, N.C. (Carmichael Arena)
Records: VCU 9-5, Colgate 7-5

The short story: Senior Vicky Giommarini (Rome, Italy) spiked a team-high 15 kills and senior opposite Gina Tuzzolo (Newport News, Va.) provided four crucial kills in the fifth set tiebreaker as VCU completed a perfect weekend at the Carolina Classic.

OPENING VOLLEY

• Giommarini hit .231 on 39 swings and also added 10 digs, two aces and two blocks for the Black and Gold
• Four Rams logged double-digit kills, including Tuzzolo, who supplied 13. She hit .345 in the match
• Junior Paula Neciporuka (Kuldiga, Latvia) added 11 kills and 14 digs, while senior Jaelyn Jackson contributed 10 kills and seven blocks to the VCU cause
• Senior Kat Young (Chantilly, Va.) led the VCU blocking attack with eight
• Alex Stein led all players 21 kills for Colgate

THE DIFFERENCE

• VCU hit .526 in the fifth set. The Rams registered 10 kills on 19 attempts and did not commit a hitting error
• The Rams never trailed in the fifth after jumping out to a 3-0 lead on a Tuzzolo kill, followed by an ace and a kill from Giommarini
• VCU hit .248 in the match, compared to Colgate's .182
• The Rams recorded 15.5 blocks in the match, as well as eight aces

NOTABLE

• Giommarini now has 983 kills, eighth in school history
• In three weekend matches, VCU recorded 47.5 blocks, an average of 3.96 per set
• For her efforts over the weekend, Tuzzolo was named Tournament MVP. Neciporuka also garnered an All-Tournament nod

NEXT UP
VCU will turn its attention to Atlantic 10 Conference play. The Rams will host Duquesne on Friday, Sept. 27 at 6 p.m. at the Siegel Center in the conference opener for both clubs. The Rams are the two-time defending A-10 regular season champs.