ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – The Florida Southern College volleyball team earned its second consecutive five-set Sunshine State Conference win on Tuesday, as the Moccasins took down Eckerd College on the road at the McArthur Center in St. Petersburg, Florida.
After upsetting then-No. 20 Nova Southeastern University in five sets on Saturday, the Mocs improved to 8-5 overall and 5-4 against SSC opponents with Tuesday's 3-2 victory over the Tritons (11-6, 4-5 SSC).
While receiving double-digit kills from four different players, the Mocs received a special performance from
Erica Ronda. The outside hitter from Chandler, Arizona, not only spiked a match- and season-high 18 kills, but she also contributed seven of FSC's season-best 16 services aces.
In Their Own Words
Head coach
Chris Keen when asked about Florida Southern's success from the service line against Eckerd…
"Serving was vital for our success tonight. I'm really proud of our team for keeping the pressure on them. Eckerd is one of the most efficient attacking teams in the league, especially when they are in system. We were able to rattle them just enough from the service line to get the win. The Mocs had great energy on and off the court tonight, and to be able to do that on the road played a big role as well."
How It Happened
- Although the Mocs started the match by winning the first six points of the opening set, Eckerd rallied to take the lead by winning the first, 26-24.
- Florida Southern responded by taking the next two sets by scores of 25-21 and 25-19.
- Ronda helped the Mocs get off to a good start in the third, as she tossed aces for two of the first three points.
- Megan Carron, Beatrice Formilan, and Cassidy Markel took advantage of Eckerd's reception woes, as they each added an ace of their own while the Mocs pulled ahead 13-5.
- The Tritons never trailed in the fourth set, evening the match at two sets apiece.
- In the decisive fifth set, the Mocs earned 13 of their 15 points via kills. Jana Gilic led the way with four, while Ronda and Mackenzie Petermann each had three in the fifth.
- With the Mocs leading 13-12, the Tritons successfully denied Ali Travis' attack, but Petermann rifled the ball from the back row for a kill that set FSC up with the match point.
- At 14-13, Petermann knocked down a hard right-handed swing from the left side to seal the win.
Inside the Numbers
- Florida Southern swept both matches from Eckerd this season and is now 77-12 all-time against the Tritons.
- The Moccasins improved to 3-0 in five-set matches in 2021.
- FSC's 16 aces are a single-match season-high.
- Ronda posted season-high figures with 18 kills and seven aces.
- The balanced offensive attack saw Petermann (14), Travis (12), and Tierra Porter (12) also reach double-digit kills.
- Gilic had eight kills and a team-high .412 attack percentage.
- Markel handed out a season-high 56 assists.
Up Next
On Friday, October 15, Florida Southern will travel to Winter Park, Florida, for a 7:00 p.m. match at Rollins College.
