TAMPA, Fla. – Despite a dominant second set against No. 8 nationally-ranked University of Tampa, the Florida Southern College volleyball team fell in four sets on the road against the Spartans on Tuesday night.
The Mocs (6-5, 3-4 SSC) produced the highest single-set attack percentage of either team in the second by pummeling the ball at a .533 clip with nine kills and only one error. That allowed FSC to even the match at one set apiece with a resounding 25-9 win.
However, the eighth-ranked Spartans (13-1, 7-0 SSC) remained unbeaten in Sunshine State Conference play by turning up the dial themselves in the third and fourth sets. UT rebounded to take the lead with a 25-18 third, before flooring a match-high 14 kills in a 25-14 fourth set.
How it Happened
- Tied a 4-4 in the first set, the Spartans began to pull away with a four-point run that included a pair of combo blocks.
- Leading by three at 9-6, Tampa then used a pair of aces to spark a five-point run, and the Mocs would never come within seven points for the remainder of the first.
- Momentum quickly swung in Florida Southern's favor in the second, as the Mocs opened the set with 14 of the first 17 points.
- Senior Tierra Porter set the tone for the second from her middle blocker position, earning Southern's first two set points with a kill and block.
- Porter added two more blocks as the Mocs roared out to a 14-3 lead.
- Tampa never recovered in the second set, as the Spartans hit minus-.083 as a team.
- Down by only one in the third, 9-8, the Mocs surrendered eight of the following nine points, as Tampa regained a two-sets-to-one lead in the match.
- Just as FSC hit the cover off the ball in the second, the Spartans did so in the fourth to secure the win.
Inside the Numbers
- At No. 8 in the national poll, Tampa represented Florida Southern's first ranked opponent of the 2021 season.
- The Spartans held slight edges in blocks (12-to-10), but the Mocs reached double-digit blocks for just the fourth time this fall.
- Porter was a force in the middle for the second consecutive match, as the Alabama native hit .556 with 10 kills and four total blocks.
- Porter's attack percentage marked a season-best, while her 10 kills are just one shy of her season-high.
- Mackenzie Petermann also reached double figures with 11 kills and added four blocks.
- Emily Crescenzi led all Mocs with five blocks.
- Beatrice Formilan recorded a match-high 13 digs.
- First-year setter Devinn Bell orchestrated the Florida Southern offense for the second match in a row and earned a career-high 28 assists.
Up Next
FSC is home inside Jenkins Field House on Saturday, October 9, for a conference match against Nova Southeastern at 4:00 p.m. In addition to alumni weekend festivities, the Mocs will celebrate the 45th anniversary of volleyball at Florida Southern on Saturday afternoon.
