Score: VCU 3, George Mason 1 (25-19, 15-25, 25-20, 25-20)
Location: Richmond, Va. (Siegel Center)
Records: VCU 15-12 (12-6 Atlantic 10), George Mason 17-13 (10-8 Atlantic 10)
 
The Short Story: Senior Julia Rienks supplied 15 kills to help VCU overcome a slow start to overtake George Mason and advance to the Atlantic 10 Conference Semifinals Friday at the Siegel Center.
 
OPENING VOLLEY
 

• One day after she was named to the Atlantic 10 Conference First Team for the second straight year, Rienks led all players in kills to spark the VCU offense
• Graduate setter Elif Ozsoy led the Rams with 38 assists while adding two aces, nine digs, and one kill
• VCU senior outside hitter Alicja Jaryszek finished with 11 kills along with an ace and block, to finish second on the team with 12.5 points. This marks the third consecutive match and fifth time in the last six that Jaryszek finished with double-digit kills
• Graduate libero Haruka Sugimoto bolster the VCU defense with 16 digs from the back line, while sophomore middle blocker Letizia Galli turned in a strong all-around performance with nine kills, four blocks, three digs and two assists 

THE DIFFERENCE

•  The Rams took advantage of various miscues by the Patriots. George Mason finished with 28 attack errors and 11 service errors, while VCU finished with 27 and five, respectively
• VCU limited the Patriots to a .120 hitting percentage in the match. Mason didn't hit better than .150 in any of the final three sets. 

NOTABLE
With her 15 kills, Rienks rises to ninth all-time in VCU history with 413 on the season. She needs just two kills to move into eighth and five to reach seventh on the all-time leaderboard.
 
NEXT UP
The A-10 tournament continues Saturday at the Siegel Center as the Rams open the day with a match against the top-seeded Dayton. Despite an undefeated conference record, the Rams battled the Flyers to five sets in each of their first two matches at the Frericks Center in Dayton earlier this season. The match begins at noon EST and will be streamed on ESPN+.