Georgia Goes 2-0 in Tom Black Debut

Friday, August 25

Athens, Ga.

7:00 PM

University of Georgia

2-0

George Mason

0-2

George Mason

Georgia

August 25, 2017 | Volleyball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

Freshman Rachel Ritchie led the team with 18 kills on the day.

Box Score vs. Presbyterian
Box Score vs George Mason

ATHENS, Ga. – Georgia volleyball head coach Tom Black's first Georgia wins featured six-straight sets on the opening day of the Benson Hospitality Invitational Friday at the Ramsey Center.

The Bulldogs stormed out to a pair of 3-0 wins in the season opener – the first against Presbyterian, followed by George Mason in the nightcap.

In the first match against Presbyterian, Georgia took the match 25-11, 25-21, 25-20. The Bulldogs commanded the first set, hitting at .522, before finishing the match with 40 total kills compared to the visitors' 22.

Freshman Rachel Ritchie highlighted the Bulldogs' play against the Blue Hose with 11 kills and three aces in her collegiate debut, as freshman T'ara Ceasar and junior Katie Houser followed with seven kills apiece.

In the evening portion of the Benson Invitational, a raucous crowd of 1,254 spectators witnessed the Bulldogs dominate the George Mason Patriots in straight sets at 25-16, 25-18, 25-22.

Carrying over their momentum from the first win, the Bulldogs cruised to a first-set win before three aces from Ceasar in the second frame put Georgia ahead 2-0.

The Patriots did not go down easy, as the teams traded points to an 18-18 stalemate.From there, three kills and a block from Ritchie helped the Bulldogs past GMU to secure the day's final victory.

For the day, Georgia hit .319 as a team, as sophomore Meghan Donovan collected 63 assists, good for 10.5 per set. Six different Bulldogs also notched aces, as Georgia posted 12.

Georgia returns to action on Saturday at 1 p.m. ET at the Ramsey Center against the UNC Asheville Bulldogs and the LIU Brooklyn Blackbirds later that night at 7 p.m. ET. The first 100 students to the night game will receive free pizza while the first 500 fans get a free schedule magnet.