Box Score
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – The Eckerd College volleyball program extended its current win streak to seven straight following a convincing four-set victory over Florida Southern College on Friday night at home, 3-1 (25-18, 25-19, 18-25, 25-16).
The Tritons (18-7, 9-2 SSC) maintained their current position towards the top of the current Sunshine State Conference in second against the Mocs (17-10, 7-4 SSC), who entered tonight third in the league standings.
EC also improved to 7-2 on the season in the McArthur Center while avenging a regular-season defeat against Florida Southern in the Jenkins Field House back on Sept. 29.
Junior outside hitter
Lindsay Biggs paced the EC offensive attack with 13 kills while seniors
Alex Laton (.353) and
Olivia Fraser (.409) hammered nine apiece while contributing to another strong defensive team effort.
Eckerd recorded 10 blocks on the night against Florida Southern's front line, including seven total by Fraser (two solo, five assisted).
Combined with a pair of key kills by Laton in the late stages, the Tritons grabbed a one-set advantage by closing the opening frame on a 6-1 run.
Momentum remained on EC's side in the second set as the Mocs rallied from a five-point deficit to make things even at 15-15.
After back-to-back kills from sophomore
Katarina Milojevic prompted a FSC timeout, the Tritons displayed a killer instinct to go up to 2-0.
Back-to-back service aces by sophomore
Ali McAlvany, including one that teetered on the net, and an emphatic kill from Fraser concluded matters in the second set and primed the Tritons for a possible straight-set decision.
Milojevic turned in eight kills (no errors) to complement a .571 hitting percentage. Biggs and
Madison Burr each recorded 11 digs to lead a trio of Tritons in double figures.
The Tritons finally slowed down Mocs' outside Anna Pietkiewicz, who entered the fourth set hitting over .500 in the match. Pietkiewicz still managed to lead all players with 18 kills, but labored in the final set, accounting for five errors.
Absent from the Mocs' starting lineup was Kate Stromberg, who tallied 15 kills against EC in Lakeland.
Florida Southern was forced to hit into 35 errors by the EC defense, tying the opponent high this season (35 vs. No. 22 West Florida in five sets).
The Tritons continue their second swing through the SSC tomorrow at Saint Leo University, looking for the regular-season sweep against the Lions at 4 p.m. on the road.
Live stats and a video feed with audio will be available.
