ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Saturday marked an historic day for the Eckerd College sand volleyball program who won their first match splitting the double header against Webber International taking match one, 3-2, before falling, 4-1.
The tandem of
Tjasa Kotnik and
Ali McAlvany along with teammates
Gabriella Reis Guimaraes and partner
Madison Whiting both dropped their matches from the No. 1 and No. 2 slots respectively.
Eckerd then pulled off three consecutive wins.
Katie Arnette and Emily Carpenter got the rally started with straight set victories, 21-15 and 21-13. The duo of
Jordan Trimble and
Savanna Cary kept the momentum going snagging back to back sets 21-11 and 21-12.
Tied 2-2 with just the No. 5 slot remaining,
Mackenzie Redner and newcomer Morgan Jones took down Kalei Levy and Sandra Skancova in three hard fought sets. EC took set one, 21-12, before dropping set two, 21-16. Redner and Jones came together to grab the final set, 15-13, to secure the Tritons first ever victory in sand volleyball, 3-2.
The Warriors came back in the second half of the double header to claim the 4-1 victory. Trimble and Cary remained perfect on the day grabbing the lone EC victory, 21-19 and 21-12.
"I was so happy for our team today coming out on top to get their first victory," said Head Coach,
Michelle Piantadosi. "They all work so hard and continue to get better and we can see the results on the court."
Eckerd (1-5) will be back on the road to take on Florida Gulf Coast in Fort Myers on Wednesday. The match is scheduled to start at 4 p.m.
