TAMPA, Fla. — Florida Southern defeated No. 17 Missouri-St. Louis 3-1 (25-20, 22-25, 25-16, 25-22) on Saturday at Bob Martinez Athletics Center. Florida Southern hit .215 while holding the Tritons to .122 and finished with a season-best 12 aces and 11.5 blocks.
The Mocs picked up their first ranked win since a 3-1 win over No. 14 Lewis on Sept. 7, 2024. FSC improves to 4-2 overall while the Tritons fall to 2-4 overall.
Florida Southern overcame an 8-2 first-set deficit and a late 20-20 tie, closing with five straight points to take the set 25-20. Early in the set,
Ella Kuosmanen and
Bali Coles supplied kills to get the offense moving, and Coles' serve carried a response from 3-8 to a 9-8 lead with three aces, a
Lindsay Piktel kill and a
Catherine Sweeney block in the stretch. After the Tritons moved back in front 11-9, FSC answered with kills from
Whitney Mall, Piktel and Kuosmanen plus a
Nako Sasaki ace, then added a Piktel block and
Brielle Mullen ace to build a 17-12 advantage. The Tritons later tied the set at 20-20 on consecutive service aces, but a service error returned the point to the Mocs before Coles served the final four points, including three straight aces to finish the set.
Florida Southern nearly erased a 21-13 deficit in the second set, winning seven straight points and using Coles' service turn to close within 21-20 before the Tritons finished the set. Earlier, Coles,
Mel Garrett, Sweeney, Piktel and
Elizabeth McDonald supplied kills as the Moccasins tried to answer the Tritons' early separation, while Sasaki added a service ace and Kuosmanen was involved in two blocks. The late push included back-to-back Mall kills from
Tori Borton, a Mall-Sweeney block, a Sweeney block and a Piktel kill from Sasaki. FSC got one more point after the Tritons reached set point, but UMSL closed the set 25-22.
Florida Southern turned a 16-15 edge in set three into a 22-15 lead with a six-point surge, starting with Piktel's kill and continuing through
Payton Nazzari's five straight service points, including back-to-back aces. The Moccasins opened the set with four straight points, with Sweeney and
Mel Garrett combining on a block before McDonald put down a kill from Mullen. The Tritons stayed close through the middle of the set and moved within 16-15 before FSC answered decisively at the service line and at the net, including consecutive blocks involving Garrett and Kuosmanen late in the run. Kuosmanen added a kill for a 23-16 advantage, and Coles finished the set with a kill as the Mocs took the third set 25-16.
Mel Garrett, McDonald and Mall helped the Moccasins trade points through a tight opening stretch in the fourth, with the set tied several times before the Tritons moved ahead 18-15. Piktel helped the response with three kills from 18-16 through 20-19, and Nazzari followed with a service ace to tie the set at 20-20 before a Tritons attack error put FSC in front 21-20. After the Tritons tied it at 21-21, the Mocs moved back ahead on a service error, added a Garrett kill from Kuosmanen and reached set point on another Tritons attack error before a final service error ended the set at 25-22.
Piktel led Florida Southern with 14 kills and 15.0 points, adding a solo block. Coles recorded six kills, a career-high six service aces and seven digs. Sasaki collected 18 digs, six assists and two service aces. Sweeney posted six total blocks, including four solo blocks, and added two kills.
Alayna Santel led the Tritons with 13 kills and 15.5 points, adding four digs and two total blocks. Skylar Weaver recorded 17 digs, served three aces and added seven assists. Marly Burbach finished with 28 assists and 14 digs while adding three kills.
Florida Southern will travel to Pensacola, Fla., to face West Florida on Friday, Sept. 11, at 5:30 p.m. at UWF Field House.
