BOX SCORE
MIAMI SHORES, Fla. – After taking an early 2-0 lead, the Nova Southeastern University volleyball team (4-13, 1-3 SSC) struggled to put Barry (8-6, 3-3 SSC) away in Sunshine State Conference action falling 3-2 to the Buccaneers at the Health & Sports Center on Tuesday night. The Sharks won the opening two frames by scores of 25-22, but dropped the final three 25-20, 26-24, 15-9.
Despite stringing together five of the best played consecutive sets this season, the Sharks fell while on the road. However, NSU’s well-balanced offense saw four individuals hit double-digits kills in a single match for the first time this season.
Sydney Cook (Fr., Miami, Fla.) led with 19 kills and a .333 hitting percentage while
Dana Holger (Fr., Lino Lakes, Minn.) followed with 16 and 12 digs for the double-double.
Samantha High (Jr., Naples, Fla.) added another 14 kills, while
Caitlin Donahue (Fr., Miami, Fla.) finished with 11.
Jordan Pappas (Sr., Naperville, Ill.) dished out a season-high 58 assists, while
Paige Boivin (Sr., Plainfield, Ill.) finished with a match-high 21 digs.
Barry’s Ashley Carrero led all hitters with a blazing .490 hitting percentage and added a match-high 27 kills. Her teammate Tania Torres added another 13 kills, while Jasmine Serna finished with a team-best 16 digs.
Never leading by more than four in the opening frame, the Sharks managed to pull out a 25-22 win over Barry to take an early 1-0 match lead. NSU’s well-balanced attack was led by Donahue with four kills and a .500 hitting percentage. High and Cook also finished with four kills each to help lead NSU’s charge. The Sharks hit .303 in the first set to Barry’s .225.
In a back-and-forth second set, Barry pulled out to an early 10-8 lead. However, NSU went on a 6-1 scoring run to regain the lead 14-11 halfway through. After five more ties, NSU finally pulled out to a 20-19 lead and led the remainder of the way to win 25-22. Both Cook and Holger blasted six kills apiece in the second set to lead NSU’s charge.
After two solid sets to open the SSC match-up and leading 2-0, NSU trailed by two to start the third. Although the Sharks tied it twice, Barry finally took a 4-3 lead and led the remainder of the set to win 25-20. But NSU carried a 2-1 lead into the fourth set. Struggling early offensively, the Buccaneers hit a blistering .452 in set three with only one error.
Tied 4-4 in the fourth, NSU finally managed to take the lead by one and went on to extend their lead by four to 12-8. However, Barry went on a 6-0 run of their own to take a 15-12 lead. The Buccaneers carried the lead for the next seven point exchanges until the Sharks tied it at 17 apiece. Battling point-for-point down the stretch, it was Barry that pulled out the 26-24 win in set four to tie the match 2-2.
With the momentum on their side, Barry took an early lead in the decisive-fifth set. Down 8-3 when the teams switched courts, NSU tried to rally but was unable to overcome the deficit falling 15-9 in set five.
The Sharks will return to Fort Lauderdale on Friday, Oct. 5 hosting the 9-6 Eckerd Tritons at 7 p.m. at the NSU Arena, followed by a 4 p.m. match against the fifth-ranked Tampa Spartans (11-2) on Saturday, Oct. 4 in Sunshine State Conference action.
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