Box Score FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern volleyball team dropped a four-set match to the visiting Panthers of Florida Tech on Friday evening in the Rick Case Arena.
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
FINAL: L, 1-3 (22-25, 25-19, 25-23, 20-25)
RECORDS: Nova Southeastern Sharks (4-14, 2-9 SSC), Florida Tech Panthers (9-10, 4-9 SSC)
LOCATION: Rick Case Arena | Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
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HOW IT HAPPENED:
 
SET 1 | Tied at 12-12, the Panthers were able to use a 7-2 run to grab a 19-14 lead, forcing the Sharks to call for a timeout. NSU returned with three consecutive points to come within two, 19-17, but the Panthers were able to pull away with kills by Olivia Hersey and Briana Garza to go up 21-17. The Sharks used their final timeout as the Panthers went up 23-19, and came back with a three-point run to bring the deficit to one, 23-22, but back-to-back FIT kills sealed the 25-22 victory for the visitors.
 
SET 2 | With the game knotted at 5-5, the Sharks used three different offensive players, Nicole Rivera, Jane Early and Kim Blasko, to take the lead 8-5 and never look back. The Panthers were able to come within one, 13-12, but that would be the closest as the Sharks took set two, 25-19.
 
SET 3 | The Shark offense was hot throughout the first half of the set, grabbing the largest lead of the game for either team at 20-13. FIT would not surrender, however, taking off on an 8-1 run to knot the game, 21-21. An FIT kill and an ace gave them a 23-22 edge, but a kill by Kim Blasko brought it back to a tie, 23-23. The Panthers were able to seal the game, 25-23, with back-to-back errors by the Sharks.
 
SET 4 | At 10-8 in NSU's favor, the Panthers exploded for a 10-2 run, earning an 18-12 advantage and forcing the Sharks to call timeout. NSU fought back to bring the deficit to only two points, 22-20, to make the Panthers use a timeout of their own, but FIT rattled off three-straight points for the 25-20 win.
 
INSIDE THE STATS:
 

• Denvyr Tyler-Palmer led all players with 20 kills, adding 15 digs.  
• Nicole Rivera and Jane Early tallied 11 and seven kills each, respectively.
• Megan Burns covered the back row, picking up 24 digs to go along with five assists.
• The Sharks recorded 10 service aces, their second highest amount all season.
• NSU out-blocked the Panthers, 7-4.

 
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:
 

• Tyler-Palmer notched her ninth double-double of the season.
• The overall series between NSU and FIT moves to 24-26 in the Panthers' favor.

 
UP NEXT
 
The Sharks will finish out the home weekend tomorrow afternoon at 4:00 p.m. hosting the Embry-Riddle Eagles.
 
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Follow along with live updates on Twitter by following @NSU_VBALL.