BOX SCORE
DAYTONA, Fla. – Three players recorded double-digit kills to lead the University of North Florida volleyball team past Bethune-Cookman, 3-1 (25-27, 27-25, 25-17, 25-21) in non-conference action Tuesday evening in Daytona, Fla.
Leading the Ospreys (4-13) was sophomore Paige Pridgeon with 18 kills and 19 digs for her ninth double-double of the season. Senior Jessica Catelano added a career-high 16 kills while tallying 11 digs. Sophomore Dagnija Medina had 10 kills and tied career-highs with seven blocks and 11 digs. Sophomore Nicole Baran added 15 digs on the defensive side. Freshman Britt Claessens had 39 assists.
“They're a really athletic team, and we had to work hard to beat them,” said head coach Kevin Campbell. “We dug well and we blocked well and were really consistent and confident throughout to win the match. The whole team played very well and it was a real team effort in the win.”
For the Wildcats (4-16) Jessica Wilson had 12 kills and 16 digs. Alexis Bliese tallied 33 assists while Janeen Davis also had a team-best 16 digs.
In the first set, the Wildcats took a slight lead at 15-12, but the Ospreys came back and tied it up at 22. The two teams were tied at 24 and 25, but back-to-back aces from Wilson gave BCU the points to claim the first set.
BCU took an early lead in the second set and were up by seven at 10-3. UNF rallied back though, tying the set late at 24. The Ospreys went up a point, before BCU tied the set at 25. A kill from Catelano and an ace from Medina secured the two points for the Ospreys, tying the match, 1-1.
The third set had UNF getting out to the early lead, going up 15-10 midway through. BCU cut the gap to two at 19-17, but the Ospreys closed out the set with a 6-0 run to take a 2-1 lead in the match.
In the final set, the two teams went back and forth early with eight ties and neither team leading by more than two points. The two teams were tied at 15 before the Ospreys opened up the scoring to take a 22-15 lead. BCU closed the gap to two at 22-20 and again at 23-21, but back-to-back kills from Pridgeon and Medina claimed the set and match for UNF.
The Ospreys will be back on the court Friday, Oct. 8 when they travel to Macon, Ga. for a 7 p.m. Atlantic Sun match against Mercer. UNF will continue its A-Sun road swing Saturday, Oct. 9 against Kennesaw State at 3 p.m. in Kennesaw, Ga.
