Box Score (vs. Wilmington)
Box Score (vs. Bentley)
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – A total of five matches went final in the McArthur Center as the first day of competition at the third annual Eckerd College Volleyball Classic concluded on Friday evening.
With Eckerd playing host, the Tritons (4-2, 0-0 SSC) defended their court in the program's home opener, sweeping Wilmington (Del.) University (25-17, 25-15, 25-13) before taking care of Bentley (Mass.) University in the nightcap (25-18, 25-15, 25-22) in separate 3-0 decisions.
The University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras also fashioned together a 2-0 record on Friday, downing Bentley and Nova Southeastern University, respectively. Wilmington defeated NSU in the 5:45 p.m. showdown.
Eckerd and UPR-Rio Piedras will meet tomorrow night to conclude the Eckerd College Classic at 7:45 p.m.
Tritons' senior outside hitter
Lindsay Biggs ripped 18 kills on just 25 swings in the opener against the Wildcats (2-4, 1-0 CACC) of Wilmington, hitting an eye-popping .600 as she sprayed ball all over the court.
The Tritons also distributed seven service aces, including four by senior setter
Madison Burr to catalyze quick starts out of the gate in each set. The front line was a formidable force against Wilmington, converging for a total of five team blocks.
Eckerd hit .412, .630 and .333, as a team in succession to help finish Wilmington in three sets.
Junior
Katarina Milojevic drilled eight kills on 16 attempts and had a pair of assisted blocks in the opener. Junior
Ali McAlvany also flirted with a .500 attacking percentage as she finished with seven kills.
More front line firepower came in the form of junior
Grace Jones and sophomore
Tjasa Kotnik, who each finished with six kills. Senior All-Sunshine State Conference libero
Kaleigh Humphrey had a team-high 11 digs.
Bentley put late pressure on the Tritons in the third and decisive frame, forcing Eckerd to rally late to avoid a fourth set being played.
Eckerd enjoyed a 12-4 run to begin the match and ended the second set on a 4-0 run as Milojevic punctuated the frame with a block and back-to-back kills.
With the Falcons' Savannah Dominguez serving late in the third set, Bentley led 20-19 following three consecutive points when kills from Biggs tied the match at 22-all and gave Eckerd its final lead of the match. Humphrey served up an ace to bring up match point.
Biggs posted 10 kills and 14 digs while Jones and Milojevic each had nine kills. Humphrey matched Biggs for the team lead in digs and Burr handed out 22 assists to give her a combined total of 47 on the day.
Five more matches are scheduled to get underway tomorrow morning beginning at 11 a.m. with Bentley and Wilmington squaring off. Barry University will play at 1:15 and 5:45 p.m. after remaining idle today.
Live stats are available for each match on EckerdTritons.com with video being streamed.
Audio commentary will only be available for the 7:45 p.m. match between Eckerd/Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras.
