Williamsburg, Va.-- The UMBC women's volleyball team opened the 2008 season, losing to William and Mary, 3-1 (25-13, 25-17, 20-25, 25-15), on Friday in the first day of the Tribe Invitational. 

UMBC was led by junior Ashley Oscars (Bakersfield, Calif./Liberty), who finished with 10 kills and six digs, while Erin Skipper led the Tribe with 20 kills and 17 digs. 

The Retrievers were marred by errors against the Tribe (1-0), finishing with a team hitting percentage of .059 with 28 errors. 

Set 3 saw freshman Alyssa Lang (Richmond, Va./Deep Run) start off with three service aces in a row and set the tone for UMBC. The Retrievers hit 12 kills on their way to a 25-20 win, led by Oscars with four kills and freshman Sarah Joy (Ottawa, Ontario, Canada/Brookfield) adding three. 

In the final set, the Tribe used an eight-point rally to take control of the set to win 25-15. 

Freshman Alexandria Spaay (Kenosha, Wisc./Kenosha Tremper) had an impressive debut for the Retrievers collecting seven digs to along with her 23 assists.

The Retrievers return to Tribe Invitational action Saturday against Appalachian State and Eastern Michigan at 12:30 p.m. and 5 p.m., respectively.