The ball did not bounce in the Rams’ favor as the Virginia Commonwealth University volleyball team dropped its match to William and Mary Tuesday night 3-1.
However, the Rams proved they could play with one of the best teams in the conference.
“I’m disappointed because we believe we can win every game,” senior team captain Griselle Lopez Pereira (Caguas, Brazil) said following the match. “We should have started playing good in the beginning.”
The Rams fell in the first two games 30-22 and 30-26 in the best-of-five match at the Siegel Center.
One reason for the slow start was because VCU played four games in three days in Kansas last week.
“We looked like a team that had been on the road for a while,” head coach James Finley said. “We made a lot of errors.”
The Rams rebounded in the third behind the strong play of junior Ludmilla Francescatto (Fraiburga, Brazil), who served three aces in a row as VCU took the game 30-21 to extend the match.
But the Rams could not stop the Tribe in the fourth game. After cutting William and Mary’s lead 23-22, the Tribe tallied six straight points to put the match away two points later.
“We need to learn to be tougher, to be more mentally prepared,” Finley said. “It was no surprise it was going to be a tough match.”
The team has improved from its season a year ago, matching its win total and winning the Third Degree Sportswear Invitational two weeks ago.
But Francescatto is not ready to settle.
“We have a good team,” she said.
The Rams’ solid play provided excitement for parents, friends and fans. One of the fans in attendance was university president Eugene P. Trani, who watched the match with his grand-daughter and her friends. He echoed Francescatto’s thoughts.
“We have a great coaching staff, a great team,” Trani said. “They’ve provided a lot of excitement.”
Francescatto and freshman Ana Luiza De Borja (Florianopolis, Brazil), each had 13 kills, and junior Jaclyn Orlando (Clinton Twp., Mich.) paced the team with five blocks.
Lopez Periera led the team with 23 digs, bringing her season total to 138 this season. She is 15 digs shy of Cindy O’Brien’s school record 1,740.
The Rams have a couple of tough matches this weekend, taking on CAA preseason favorite Towson Friday and Delaware Saturday.
Saturday, Mar 28, 2026