LAKEWOOD, NJ (Sept, 9, 2025) - Georgian Court Volleyball has been dominant on their home court in the first two seasons under Coach Shana Rayside, and that continued into year three. Playing in their 2025 home opener, Georgian Court swept Queens 3-0, winning 25-23, 25-21, 28-26. It's the Lions first win of the season as they improve to 1-3.

How it Happened
• It was an evenly played match as two of the five sets were determined by the minimum two points, and the third was just a four-point win.
• Most numbers were fairly even. The Lions hit .227 as a team and the Knights .225.
• Both teams made eight service errors, but GCU was able to get some of those points back with six aces to the Knights three.
• Queens was able to put back nine blocks on defense and Georgian Court six.

Set 1
• The Lions maintained a lead for much of set one, but the outcome was far from certain.
• Queens outhit GCU .275-.205 in the frame, but some bad passing, three reception errors and two set errors proved costly for the Knights.
• A 4-0 Lion run with two kills from Ava Churnesky pushed the GCU lead to 9-4 and forced and early Queens timeout.
• The Lions pushed the lead to as much as seven, 21-14, before Queens started to rally.
• The Knights scored five straight, getting back to within two, 21-14.
• Another Churnesky kill brought GCU to set point up 24-20, but Queens didn't go down easy. They scored three straight, but Churnesky was there again to put the set away with her seventh kill.
Set 2
• Queens raced out to an early lead scoring eight of the first 10 points and looked primed to tie the match at one.
• GCU kept things close until striking for six straight points to take their first lead, 16-15.
• It was still a one point game nearing the end as back-to-back kills cut the Lions lead down to 22-21.
• GCU took advantage of a Queens attack error to side out, then a block and kill from Churnesky gave the Lions a 25-21 win.
Set 3
• After the tough loss in set two, the Knights found themselves down 9-2 in set three thanks to a 7-0 Lion run and a sweep seemed inevitable.
• GCU had three blocks during the run, with Kyla Davis chipping in on all three and Addison Wellington helping out on two.
• As they have all night though, Queens proved to be a tough out. They rallied all the way back and found themselves on top, 21-20. 
• Set three featured 10 tie scores. Queens had GCU on the ropes at set point, but the Lions got a kill from Churnesky and a service ace from Carmen Rivera to stay alive.
• The Knights held set point again at 25-24 and 26-25, but couldn't finish the job.
• Kills from Churnesky and Genesis Simanca put GCU at match point and a poor set from the Knights ended the match and completed the GCU sweep.

Lion Stat Leaders
• Ava Churnesky led all scorers with 17 kills and added four digs and two blocks.
• Genesis Simana was all over the floor with 14 kills and 16 digs.
• Kyla Davis helped the offense and defense with five kills and five blocks.
• Iciar Zayas passed out 39 assists and her 10 digs gave her a double-double.
• Carmen Rivera picked up 19 digs and drilled three service aces.

For the Knights
• Kylynn White had a team-high 12 kills to go along with 15 assists. She was just three digs shy of a triple-double.
• Kendall Conrad landed 10 kills with five blocks.
• Lindsay Osterhoudt chipped in seven kills, four digs and three blocks.
• Jayna Marie Lorenzo passed out 21 assists.
• Alexis Stoehrer and Sophie Schonauer each registered 12 digs.

News and Notes
• The Lions improve to 3-0 in home openers under Coach Rayside and 24-5 overall in two-plus years. 
• Georgian Court returns the favor to Queens who swept the Lions in Flushing in 2024.
• Iciar Zayas recorded her 60th service ace. Her 39 assists are her most in a match since having 43 Oct. 19, 2023 against Jefferson. It's also the second-most she's ever had in a three-set match in her career.
• Georgian Court's 45 kills and six blocks are their most in a match this season. 

Up Next
• Georgian Court stays at home and hosts a tri-match with Pace and Lincoln (PA) this Saturday, Sept. 12. Their game against Lincoln is set for 12 pm with Pace scheduled for 5 pm. Lincoln and Pace will square off at 2:30 pm.