Tampa Rallies Past Tritons in Five Sets

TAMPA, Fla. - After taking the first two sets from the University of Tampa on Tuesday night, the Eckerd volleyball team seemed to be in prime position for its first win over the Spartans since 2011.

Unfortunately, the Spartans had other plans as they claimed the third, fourth and fifth sets to complete a come-from-behind 3-2 win.

HOW IT ENDED
Final: Tampa 3, Eckerd 2 (25-22, 25-16, 20-25, 19-25, 11-15)
Records: Eckerd 15-11 (8-10 SSC); Tampa 16-13 (11-7 SSC)
All-Time Series: Tampa leads, 75-1

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Just as they did in the first meeting this season, the Tritons jumped ahead early and maintained control throughout the first set. A four-point run gave EC a 7-3 lead, though Tampa stayed within striking distance for much of the set.  Eckerd later pulled ahead by five at 18-13 before UT took three straight points, forcing an EC timeout.  Madison Whiting broke the short Spartan streak with a kill, and moments later the Tritons won four straight points for a 24-18 lead.  Tampa made things interesting by taking the next five points but Eckerd closed the set on a Stephanie Karlovics kill for a 1-0 match lead.
• The Tritons again pulled ahead early in set two and continued to add to its lead at the set progressed.  Five points in a six-rally series pushed the EC advantage to 17-10 and, after a UT side-out, Eckerd rolled off four straight points for an insurmountable 21-11 lead.  UT broke set point twice but faced too large a deficit, and a combination block by Karlovics and Fernanda Reis gave the Tritons a 25-16 set win and a 2-0 match lead.
• Tampa came out of the extended break with a renewed purpose, blazing ahead 8-2 to open the third set.  The Spartans' lead reached seven before a four-point run by Eckerd closed the gap to 13-11.  However, Eckerd could not pull closer as UT reclaimed control at 21-14. A late push by the Tritons came up short and Tampa claimed a 25-20 set win.
• Eckerd took the upper hand out of the gate in the fourth set, using a four-point run to build a 7-3 lead. However, the lead didn't last long.  Tampa used a 4-0 run of its own to move ahead, 11-10, and soon extended its advantage to 14-11.  The Tritons managed to get within a point on two occasions, but the Spartans elevated their play down the stretch to force a fifth set with a 25-19 win.
• In the final set, Tampa took a 6-2 lead only to see EC fight back to tie the set at 7-7.  The Spartans won the next two points and held the lead for the remainder of the set.  Eckerd twice cut the deficit to one but UT had an answer each time.  Tampa took points on five of the final seven rallies, capping a comeback victory with a 15-11 win in the fifth set.

NOTES AND NUMBERS

• Eckerd was highly efficient on the attack in the first two sets, hitting .333 in each with a total of only five attack errors.  However, the Tritons hit just .132 for the rest of the match with 16 errors.
• The Tritons' last three losses have all been in five sets.
• Eckerd totaled seven aces in the match, five of which came in the first set.  Karlovics and Kaitlyn Sibson each had two.
• Mackenzie Redner led the attack with 12 kills while Madison Whiting and Abbie O'Ferrell had 10 each.  Fernanda Reis assisted on 38 of EC's 50 kills.

UP NEXT
The Tritons return to the McArthur Center for their final two matches of the regular season, needing two wins in order to help receive a spot in the NCAA South Regional Tournament.  Eckerd welcomes Embry-Riddle on Friday for a 7:00 PM start before hosting Florida Tech on Saturday at 6:00 PM.