Box Score

2012 CAA Volleyball Tournament Central (caasports.com)

FAIRFAX, Va. – The Northeastern volleyball team capped off its regular season with a strong showing on the road, sweeping George Mason in straight sets, 3-0. Kelly Bacon led the Huskies with 16 kills, her sixth straight double-digit kill performance to end the season. As is usually the case, Natalia Skiba led the way for the NU defense with 17 digs on the evening.

The Huskies (20-6, 9-3 CAA) started off the first set on the right foot, jumping out to a 6-1 advantage early, capped by a Nicole Bishop kill, set up by Jillian Briner. Both sides traded the next six points, 3-3, and Mason was eventually able to even things up again at 13-13. But a Patriots' service error by Bernetta Moore kicked off a 12-2 run to close out the set for the Huskies, who got strong support from the likes of Hanna Gibeau and Jasmine Marta, who had three kills in that stretch.

NU played from behind in the start of the second set, with Mason holding a 5-3 advantage at one point, but back-to-back kills from Bacon and Bishop got NU rolling for a spell. But things really fell the Huskies' way after a Patriot attack error and service error to put the Huskies ahead, 13-12. The Red and Black used another long run, this time a 5-1 spree, to pull ahead to 18-13, with Bacon earning two kills. Northeastern closed out the set with another run, this time winning the final five-of-seven points, with a kill by Briner to seal the second set, 25-18.

Looking for its daunting 12th straight-set win of the year, the Huskies battled the Patriots in the early going of the third frame. A few errors by both sides allowed the score to settle at 9-7 in the Huskies' favor, but three straight kills by Bacon set Northeastern in motion once again. The Huskies used a 6-1 run this time to move ahead of Mason, 16-8, before the Patriots tried to make a run. GMU brought things to 18-14 at one point, thanks to a few Huskies' errors, but NU pulled away late. Two consecutive errors by Mason and one final kill by Briner, who also ended the second set, secured a 25-16 third-set win, clinching the Huskies' straight-set victory in the final regular season game.

Up next, NU will head to Towson, Md., next weekend for the CAA Tournament, where it has earned the No. 3 seed and the right to play sixth-seeded James Madison on Nov. 16. First serve betweent the Huskies and Dukes is set for 4 p.m., and will be streamed live on CAA.com.