Box Score ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Throughout the early stages of conference play, the Eckerd College volleyball team has been close to breaking through but hadn't quite been able to get over the proverbial hump.
On Friday night, the Tritons finally broke through in a big way as they scored a 3-1 upset of No. 6 Florida Southern at the McArthur Center.
After dropping the first set (21-25) despite leading by three points late, Eckerd took the next three sets (27-25, 25-21, 25-21) to hand the sixth-ranked Mocs their first loss of the season.
The moment was an important one for head coach
Michelle Piantadosi and her team, not just in getting the victory but also in moving past some mental hurdles.
"This was a huge breakthrough," she said. "Tonight is who we were always capable of being. I don't think there was a single point my team didn't find for tonight, and that's what I am most proud of."
In the second set, the Tritons (6-6, 1-3) started to show the ability Piantadosi knew they possessed as they fought back from set point with three straight kills to tie it up at 24-24. After a Mocs kill got them back to set point, EC rolled off three more points - the last two coming on
Kaitlyn Sibson aces - to even the match with a 27-25 win.
But the true turning point of the night came in the third set, a set that has been a bit of an Achilles heel for Eckerd this season. Florida Southern (12-1, 3-1), driven by the second-set loss, quickly jumped ahead 13-5 and looked to be on its way to making the third set a difficult one for Eckerd.
As it turned out, that set soon became a difficult one for the Mocs.
Behind the service of
Arielle Erillo, the Tritons rolled off 11 straight points to turn the eight-point deficit into a 19-14 lead. The run was finally broken by an FSC block of a
Tjasa Kotnik attack, and the Mocs soon pulled back within a point at 22-21.
But yet again, EC responded by taking the next three points - the final two coming off of blocks by Kotnik,
Rachel Cornatzer and
Lauryn Nelson - to go ahead two sets to one.
While the early deficit may have shaken them in the past, Piantadosi said it didn't make a difference tonight.
"The girls weren't playing for the score, they were playing for themselves," she said. "Arielle served some bombs and hit the targets exactly where we asked her to serve. They executed the game plan and were able to get right back in it."
The Tritons again took control late in the fourth set, methodically pulling away from an 18-18 tie. EC took five of the final seven points, all of which came on kills from five different players, to finish off the victory.
Being unable to finish off sets late had been costly to Eckerd in September, and changing that trend became a focus of practice this week.
"We practiced for these situations more intensely and with a purpose," Piantadosi said. "We knew that was something we had to overcome mentally. We made a lot of progress in getting through some mental breakdowns. That was the difference tonight, the mentality of the players. They were ready to take control when the opportunity presented itself."
Kotnik finished the night with a match-high 20 kills while
Katie Arnette added 15, several of which came from the back row. Nelson narrowly missed double-digits in kills, posting nine.
Eckerd's defense was also outstanding tonight as it limited the Mocs to a .201 attack percentage and totaled 12 blocks. Sibson had 18 digs on the back row while
Emily Schadow had 13, giving her a double-double as she also set 44 assists.
Before tonight, the Mocs had only lost four sets all season. The loss ended the team's best start since since 1990 and marked Eckerd's first win over a ranked opponent since beating No. 22 West Florida on October 20, 2012. It was Eckerd's first win over a top-10 opponent since knocking off No. 1 Tampa on October 28, 2011.
The Tritons will attempt to ride the momentum of tonight's win as they host Florida Tech tomorrow at 4:00 PM.
