FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Starting Sunshine State Conference play against one of the top teams in the league, the Nova Southeastern volleyball team fell in straight sets to the 23rd-ranked Palm Beach Atlantic Sailfish on Friday evening in the Rick Case Arena.
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
FINAL: L, 0-3 (17-25, 17-25, 24-26)
RECORDS: Nova Southeastern Sharks (7-2, 0-1 SSC), Palm Beach Atlantic Sailfish (6-3, 1-0 SSC)
LOCATION: Rick Case Arena | Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
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HOW IT HAPPENED:
 
SET 1 | Down 7-2, the Sharks started chipping away at the Sailfish's lead, eventually using a 3-0 run including back-to-back Ally Ford kills to come within one of PBA, 11-10. An Amanda Hall kill from Caylee Cox made it a one-point game once again at 12-11, but that would be the closest the Sharks would get as Palm Beach Atlantic took advantage of a 13-6 scoring run to take set one, 25-17.
 
SET 2 | A few points into the second set, a kill by Brittany Landrum gave the Sharks a 3-2 lead, but that would be the last time NSU was on top as a 10-1 Sailfish run put the visiting side ahead 12-4. Three-straight kills by Sami Spadaro, Ford and Emily Sippel brought the Sharks within five at 17-12, but it wasn't enough to spark a comeback as PBA went on to take set two by the same score as set one, 25-17.
 
SET 3 | In the closest set of the night, the Sharks were down 9-6 before a kill by Ford ignited a 7-2 Nova Southeastern run to give the Sharks a 13-11 edge and force PBA to call for a timeout. The two teams exchanged leads three times and the game saw five ties before the final points of the match. At 20-20, PBA used a kill by Sam Wolf to steal the lead before a kill by Alex Boone knotted the set once again, 21-21. Again, the Sailfish went up 22-21 before a Gabby Bauch kill evened the score back to 22-22. NSU regained the lead with a block by Landrum and Hall, 23-22, before the Sailfish tied it again with a kill by Amber Rowoldt. NSU's final lead came at set-point 24-23 as Landrum connected on a ball from Cox, but a 3-0 run by the Sailfish ended NSU's comeback and gave the visiting squad the 3-0 overall victory.
 
INSIDE THE STATS:
 

• Ford tallied a team-high eight kills, picking up 10 digs along the way.
• Landrum recorded six kills of her own, adding three blocks and one ace.
• Sippel also had six kills and two blocks, while scooping up eight digs and handing out two aces.
• Boone connected on five kills and put up three blocks.
• Aleyna Kennel led the team with 13 digs.
• Madison Cook contributed a team-high 16 assists, making seven digs, while Cox had 11 assists and three digs.

 
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:
 

• The Sailfish hold a 39-26 record over the Sharks, and have won the last 16-straight matches.  

 
UP NEXT
 
The Sharks will continue league play tomorrow afternoon, heading south to Miami Shores to take on the No. 16 Barry Buccaneers.
 
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Follow along with live updates on Twitter by following @NSU_VBALL.