Box Score LAKELAND, Fla. - Winning on the road in the Sunshine State Conference is never an easy task.
And for the Eckerd volleyball team, a handful of points in three sets were the difference as the Tritons fell at No. 25 Florida Southern, 3-1, on Tuesday night.
All three set losses for Eckerd came by two points, losing the first and third sets, 25-23, and the fourth set, 27-25. The second set was the only one with a comfortable margin as Eckerd took a 25-19 win.
The Tritons (13-6, 5-2 SSC) had a chance to extend the match to five sets, fighting off match point via a
Madison Whiting kill followed by an FSC attack error that got Eckerd to set point in the fourth frame.
But a trio of errors on the next three rallies closed the door on an EC comeback as the Mocs (13-5, 5-2 SSC) avenged a September loss in St. Petersburg and moved into a tie with Eckerd in the SSC standings.
The Tritons out-hit Florida Southern .160 to .155 and had 11 more kills, but were damaged by errors committing 51 to FSC's 40.
Kali Boatwright led the Eckerd attack with 19 kills while adding 14 digs for a double-double.
Gabriella Reis also recorded a double-double with 48 assists and a team-high 22 digs.
Lauryn Nelson added 13 kills while
JaQuayla Baker posted 11.
Kaitlyn Sibson (19 digs) and
Arielle Erillo (17 digs) provided their usual strong defensive support in the back row.
The outcome of tonight's matches further tightened the race in the Sunshine State Conference standings. Saint Leo's win over the University of Tampa creates a three-way tie for first place in the standings among Eckerd, Florida Southern and Saint Leo with Tampa a game back.
Eckerd returns to the floor on Thursday, hosting Florida Tech at 7:00 PM.
