Box Score Seventh-seeded Saint Leo staged a remarkable comeback in the deciding fifth set to stun the 14th-ranked Moccasins, 20-25, 25-21, 18-25, 25-16, 15-13, in the opening round of the NCAA Division II South Regional at Tampa Thursday, ending the Moccasins' season.
The Moccasins, seeded second in the regional, led two sets to one, but Saint Leo dominated the fourth set 25-16 to force the deciding fifth set.
FSC jumped out to an 8-2 lead and was still up 11-8, just four points away from the win, when the Lions scored three straight points to tie the set at 11-11. Julia Borecka's kill put the Moccasins back in front 12-11, but Saint Leo responded with another spurt of three straight points to take a 14-12 advantage. Borecka tallied another kill to make it 14-13, but the Lions' Kaitlin McKenna delivered a kill for match point to give Saint Leo (29-10) the win and a berth in the semifinals Friday against Nova Southeastern, which had beaten Lynn in three sets in the first match of the day.
The Moccasins finished their season at 25-9.
Borecka and Danielle Higginbotham led FSC with 17 kills each and Maggie Drumm added 14 kills in her final FSC match. Borecka hit .516 for the match, Higginbotham hit .364 and Drumm hit .500. McKenna led Saint Leo with 15 kills, followed by Chelsea Armer with 14, Danielle Bletso with 13 and Jenna Jordan with 10.
Danielle Durham had five kills and 11 digs in her final FSC match. She finishes her career ranked second in career digs (1,750) and seventh in career kills (1,321), while Higginbotham ended her career ranked 11th in career kills (1,136) and 13th in career blocks (293).
