Box Score WEST PALM BEACH, FL - Florida Southern College volleyball crushed arch rival Tampa, 3-0, on Friday to advance to the NCAA Division II South Region title match. The Moccasins (22-10) held the Spartans (23-9) to their lowest attack percentage in more than four years, and knocked Tampa out in the regional semifinal for the second-straight year.
HOW IT HAPPENED
• Florida Southern trailed Tampa throughout the early stages of the first set, but was able to take a 13-12 lead midway through. However, the Spartans scored four in a row to take a 16-13 lead and seize momentum. The Moccasins responded with a 4-1 run of their own to tie the set at 17-17. Florida Southern would end the set on an 8-4 run, with Nicole Mattson logging four kills, to earn a 25-21 set win and a 1-0 match lead.
• Tampa raced out to a 7-3 lead in the second set and looked as if it might tie the match up, but the Mocs settled in and were able to tie things up at 12-12 and force a Spartan timeout. Following the break in the action, Florida Southern went on a 13-4 run to cruise to a 25-16 second-set win.
• The Spartans looked as if they may stay alive when they grabbed a 12-8 lead midway through the third set, but a 7-2 run by the Moccasins gave FSC a 15-14 lead and forced a Tampa timeout. The stoppage would do little to slow Florida Southern's momentum as it scored four of the next five points to force the Spartans to take their last timeout. After a service ace pulled Tampa within four (23-19) the Moccasins would force two service errors to finish off the set and the match with a 25-19 win.
• Florida Southern put up one of its best defensive efforts of the year, holding Tampa to a season-low .091 attack percentage. It was the Spartans' lowest attack percentage since hitting just .020 in a 3-0 loss to West Texas A&M on Sept. 8, 2012. The Moccasins did not allow a single Tampa player to hit double-digit kills.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
• Florida Southern advanced to the South Region final for the second-straight year, and improved to 25-32 all-time in the NCAA Division II Tournament. The Moccasins improved to 6-7 all-time when facing the Spartans in the South Regional, and swept Tampa for the first time since 2008.
• Nicole Mattson finished with 24 kills, falling just two shy of her career high. Mattson had 10 kills in both the first and third sets, and hit an incredible .455. She also added 10 digs and two solo blocks. She recorded two less kills as an individual than Tampa did as an entire team.
• Anna Tovo finished with nine kills, ending her streak of double-digit kill performances at 44-straight matches. She tallied 11 digs and two service aces.
• Brindl Langley finished with 10 digs to push her career total to 2,003, improving on her school record for career digs. Bethany Besancenez tallied 33 assists to give her 2,319 for her career. She is 10th in school history in career assists.
UP NEXT
• Florida Southern will face either Palm Beach Atlantic or West Florida in the South Region championship at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday. PBA is the No. 1 seed in the region, while UWF is the No. 4 seed.
• The winner of Saturday's match will advance to the quarterfinals of the 2016 NCAA Division II Tournament, where it will face the winner of the Southeast Region.
• The Moccasins last won the South Region in 1991, finishing fourth overall at the NCAA Tournament. Should the Mocs face Palm Beach Atlantic, it would be a rematch of last year's regional final.
