How It Happened
Senior Jill Anderson and freshman Lena Vedder led Rhode Island (14-15, 6-7 A-10) to a four-set victory over George Washington Sunday, helping the Rams clinch a spot in the Atlantic 10 Championship. The Rams won the match 25-22, 25-22, 23-25, 25-28.

Anderson and Vedder combined for 25 kills with just three errors as the Rams hit .235 as a team. With the victory, Rhode Island clinched at least the sixth seed in the conference tournament, the second time in three seasons the Rams have qualified.

Rhody jumped out quickly, winning the first two sets. In the opening set, the Rams capitalized on a shaky George Washington attack. The Colonials (14-12, 9-3 A-10) committed 11 attack errors and had an attack percentage of -0.077. Anderson's kill closed out the set.

Rhody took over in the fourth set. The teams traded points early in the set, and the score was tied 6-6 through 12 points. From there, the Rams steadily built its lead to 22-12 before closing out the match on a kill by Catie Steffen.

The match may have been a first-round preview for the A-10 tournament. George Washington is the current third-place team, while the Rams are in sixth place. Six teams make the conference tournament, with the top two seeds receiving first-round byes. If everything stands as is, Rhode Island and GW would play in the first round Friday, Nov. 22.

Inside the Box Score

• Sophomore Franki Darnold finished with 11 kills, and now has 388 for the season. She needs just 12 more to become the 12th player in program history to have 400 or more in one season. The last person to do it was Kayla Wilson, who had 433 in 2011
• With 11 kills and 10 assists, Darnold recorded her 13th double-double of the season.
• Senior Britta Baarstad played in the 110th match of her career Sunday, putting her in a tie for 12th in school history with Carrie Gangl (1994-97), Amy Kauppila (2000-03), Michelle Fulton (2000-03) and Mary Kate Reardon (2000-03).
• Freshman Callan Kinnan finished with 45 assists. She now has 12 matches with 40 or more assists this season.
• Freshman Layne Self had eight kills and eight blocks, including one solo stuff. In two matches this week, she had 17 blocks.
• Lizzy Scanlon again bolstered the back line, finishing with 12 digs.
• Catie Steffen had eight kills, six digs and four blocks. 

Stat of the Day
30 – Attack errors by George Washington, 13 of which came on blocks by the Rhode Island defense.

What's Next
Rhode Island closes out its season Saturday evening against Fordham (5 p.m.). Seniors Jill Anderson, Britta Baarstad and Kalyn Schieffer will be honored before the final home match of their career. It also will be Bystander Awareness Night, as the volleyball team is working to bring awareness to Bystander Intervention, pledging to take a stand against sexual assault and harassment. The team is working with the URI Peer Advocates to help make the URI campus a safer place for everyone.