Box Score ST. LEO, Fla. – Despite holding a 2-1 set advantage over the No. 24 Saint Leo Lions, the Nova Southeastern volleyball team fell in five sets to the host team on Friday evening.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
FINAL: L, 2-3 (23-25, 25-18, 25-22, 22-25, 13-15)
RECORDS: Nova Southeastern (5-16, 3-11 SSC), No. 24 Saint Leo (17-5, 11-3 SSC)
LOCATION: Marion Bowman Activities Center | Lakeland, Fla.
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HOW IT HAPPENED:
SET 1 | With the Sharks ahead, 10-5, the Lions rallied back to take the lead, 16-15, and never let go. NSU was able to knot the game, 22-22, with a kill by
Denvyr Tyler-Palmer and again, 23-23, with an error by the Lions, but the home team eventually ended up on top, 25-23.
SET 2 | The beginning of the second set was was very back and forth until at 11-11, the Sharks used a four-point run for a 15-11 advantage, forcing Saint Leo to call timeout. NSU continued to put on the relentless offensive pressure, leading by as many as seven points, 20-13. The Lions were able to tally only five more points the rest of the game, as the Sharks went on to even the match, 1-1, with a 25-18 win.
SET 3 | Despite a 10-minute intermission between sets, the Sharks kept all momentum on their side of the net, jumping out to a commanding 12-5 lead. The Lions pushed to come within three, 18-15, but a three-point run by NSU, including kills by
Maddie Uilk,
Nicole Rivera and
Maya Patterson, gave the Sharks a 21-15 lead as SLU used their final timeout. Four consecutive points by the Lions late in the game cut the deficit to two, 23-21, but a Lion error and a kill by
Samantha Blasko gave the Sharks the win and overall 2-1 advantage.
SET 4 | The fourth set looked to be all NSU once again, but a 10-4 run by Saint Leo allowed the Lions to steal the lead from the Sharks late in the match, 20-19. An error by SLU tied things up, 20-20, before a four-point run by the Lions put them at game point, 24-20. The Sharks attempted to rally with back-to-back kills by Tyler-Palmer, but a kill by SLU's Victoria Omoregie stopped them, and the host team forced a fifth and final set with the 24-22 win.
SET 5 | Down 10-7, the Sharks called for a timeout, halting the Lions' run as SLU's Nina Vattovaz's serve went out of bounds. After a Saint Leo kill, a kill by Tyler-Palmer put the Sharks back within two, 11-9, but back-to-back points by the Lions pushed the lead to 13-9 and NSU was forced to use their final timeout. NSU returned to the floor with a 4-1 run to cut the deficit to one point and scare the home team, but Saint Leo's Dallas Jasper ended the Sharks' comeback and the game, 15-13, with SLU on top.
INSIDE THE STATS:
- Tyler-Palmer led all players on either side of the court with 26 kills, adding 15 digs to complete the double-double.
- Nicole Rivera tallied 12 kills while Samantha Blasko chipped in nine.
- Samantha Blasko also recorded 36 assists and Megan Burns picked up 20 digs, while Kaelyn Brock had 12.
- The Sharks continued to stay strong at the net, recording 15.5 total blocks, eight coming from Jane Early and six from both Tyler-Palmer and Uilk.
- NSU also dished out seven service aces, three from Rachael Nelson and two from Burns.
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:
- Tyler-Palmer's double-double was her 11th of the season.
- Early's eight blocks ties her career-high. She currently leads the team with 75 total blocks.
- With the win, Saint Leo completes the season sweep over the Sharks.
UP NEXT
The Sharks will travel to St. Petersburg, Fla. to take on the Eckerd Tritons tomorrow at 4:00 p.m.
SHARKS ON SOCIAL MEDIA:
Follow along with live updates on Twitter by following @NSU_VBALL.
