Final Boxscore
Game Book
Postgame Interview (Paige Pridgeon)

JACKSONVILLE -- The North Florida volleyball team rallied from two sets down to hand crosstown rival Jacksonville a 3-2 (23-25, 23-25, 25-16, 25-22, 21-19) loss Friday night in front of a racuous crowd of 822 in UNF Arena.

“We've been working the last couple of weeks on playing under pressure, keeping our confidence, and playing to the next point. We executed that tonight,” said head coach Kevin Campbell. “We are coming together and know how to make each other better.
 
Three UNF players finished with a double-double. Paige Pridgeon, Anna Budinska and Casey Giovanazzi each had double-doubles that either set or tied career marks. Pridgeon had a career night, with a career-tying 26 kills and a career-high 29 digs. Budinska had career-highs for both kills (19) and digs (18). Giovannazzi put up a career-high 65 assists, while making a career-high 13 digs.
 
Kathryn Kane led the Dolphins with 11 kills and 21 digs.
 
UNF and Jacksonville went back-and-forth throughout the first set with the largest lead being three points. The Dolphins held several three-point advantages late in the set, including at 23-20. Back-to-back kills from Pridgeon sparked a 3-1 run that pulled the Ospreys to within one. However, Kylie Jacob had a kill to conclude the set and give Jacksonville the 25-23 win.
 
UNF rallied from a six-point deficit midway through the second set. With Jacksonville up 16-10, a Pridgeon kill started a 6-1 UNF run. UNF continued to chip away at the Dolphins' lead. Trailing by two, Budinska had a kill that was the first for three-straight UNF points. During that run, the Ospreys took a 21-20 lead behind a Budinska kill. Jacksonville responded with a 3-0 run if its own to regain the lead. UNF fought back, even pulling to within one on a Budinska kill, but an Osprey error gave Jackonsville another 25-23 win.
 
The Ospreys had an explosive third set, hitting .324 for the set. UNF used a 9-0 run midway through to power them to a 25-16 victory. With the set deadlocked at 15-15, a kill by Carolyn Jenkins broke the tie and began UNF's run. During that run, Jenkins and Marija Pantovic combined for six kills and two blocks.
 
In the fourth set, UNF withstood a late Jacksonville rally to win the set and force a deciding fifth set. The Ospreys built up several late seven-point leads, but the Dolphins gradually chipped away at UNF's advantage. Jacksonville eventually used a 7-0 run to pull to with one and make it 22-21 in favor of UNF. However, the Ospreys got three of the set's last four points to take the set.
 
The excitement continued throughout the fifth set which included nine chances at match point. UNF and Jacksonville fought back and forth. Jacksonville took a three-point, 10-7, but UNF came back from that deficit as the teams battled for the match's final point. Six ties occurred as the teams tried to get the match's final point. With the score tied 19-19, Pentovic broke the tie with a kill to give UNF the advantage. On the next point, UNF sealed the win with a Pridgeon kill.
 
“There was great energy tonight. All day today, the team kept saying how they wanted to get a Barrel point,” said Campbell. “However, the real significant part was how we played with confidence.”
 
UNF returns to the court on Saturday when the Ospreys host Florida A&M in a non-conference match-up. Match time is scheduled for 6 p.m. at UNF Arena.