ST. LEO, Fla. -- Opening their weekend Sunshine State Conference road trip on Friday night, the Nova Southeastern University volleyball team (11-5, 4-2 SSC) dropped a 3-0 matchup against the Saint Leo Lions (9-5, 4-2 SSC). The Sharks fell at the Marion Bowman Center in straight sets 25-17, 25-18, 25-13.

NSU struggled to keep up with the high-powered Saint Leo offense throughout the match. In the opening frame, the Lions hit .300 while the Sharks finished with a team percentage of .138. SLU's offensive efficiency only improved as the match went on as they hit .447 in the second set and .389 in the third. 

In the first set, NSU took an early 2-1 lead, but Saint Leo went on a 15-6 scoring run to take an eight-point lead. The Lions then took advantage of several Shark ball miscues to take the set 25-17. SLU's offense caught fire and dominated the second set with 20 kills on 38 attempts. SLU took a 2-0 advantage after winning the set by a similar score of 25-18.

Although the Sharks continued with an aggressive offensive attach in the third set, their attempts fell short of finding the openings in the SLU defensive court as the Lions went on to take the third and final set 25-13. 

Having lost four out of their last five matches, the Sharks continue to struggle without senior outside hitter Sydney Cook (Miami, Fla.) in the lineup. Although Devyn Main (So., Port Charlotte, Fla.) hit .429 and Jenn Rosado (Fr., Miami, Fla.) hit a blistering .600, it was the first time this season the Sharks were held to five or fewer kills per individual in a single match. 

However, the Sharks will be back at it again on Saturday, Oct. 10 facing Eckerd at 4 p.m. in St. Petersburg. NSU will be looking to regain some of their early season momentum as they head into the SSC/GSC Crossover that will be held the following week at the University of West Georgia.