UNF-Missouri Boxscore (PDF)
UNF-Michigan Boxscore (PDF)
 
COLUMBIA, Mo. – The University of North Florida volleyball team opened the 2012 season with losses to two challenging opponents at the 2012 Tiger Invitational at the Hearnes Center. The Ospreys fell 3-0 (25-18, 25-17, 25-19) to host Missouri in their first match and then dropped a 3-1 (25-17, 19-25, 25-20-25-18) match to No. 23 Michigan.
 
Against Missouri, who received votes in the AVCA Coaches Preseason Poll, Paige Pridgeon and Carolyn Jenkins led the Ospreys with eight kills each. Pridgeon also served up four aces. Britt Claessens put up 24 assists, while Nicole Baran had 10 digs.
 
Molly Kreklow had 31-assist, 11-dig double-double for the Tigers and was also part of four block assists. Defensively, Jade Hayes also had 11 digs and Melissa Hartsel was part of five block assists. Offensively, Lisa Henning recorded a match-high 12 kills.
 
UNF and Missouri battled close throughout the first part of the opening set. With the Ospreys trailing by one, a Dagnija Medina kill and a Tiger attack error allowed UNF to take an 11-10 lead. However, Missouri answered with a four-point run, going up 14-11 on a Whitney Little kill. Missouri gradually started to pull away, building a five-point 18-13. UNF got the next two points in order to make it an 18-15 set, but that was the closest the Ospreys could get for the rest of the set as Missouri won the first set 25-18.
 
In the second set, a four-point run allowed the Tigers to distance themselves from the Ospreys. The Tigers built up a seven-point lead before a Marija Pantovic kill and back-to-back Medina aces gave UNF three-straight points and made it 12-8 in favor of Missouri. However, the Tigers answered with a three-point run of their own to regain the seven-point lead.
 
UNF pulled to within five on three occasions, including at 17-12 on a kill from Pridgeon. Missouri got a kill from Henning that sparked a 5-1 run and gave the Tigers a 22-13 lead. However, a Pantovic kill started another three-point run for the Ospreys, bringing them to within six. Missouri then took three of the set's final four points in order to win the set 25-17 and go up 2-0 in the match.
 
Several early runs allowed the Tigers to take control of the third set. After the Tigers took a five-point lead, the Ospreys came back to pull to within three on a Nicole Baran ace to make it 8-5. However, the Tigers tallied several back-to-back points before a Henning kill started a five-point run and resulted in Missouri going up 18-8.
 
UNF fought back.  Trailing by nine, the Ospreys capitalized on a Tiger service error and went on a five-point run to pull to within four and make it a 22-18 match. The run included two aces from Pridgeon. However, the rally came up just short as UNF and Missouri traded points before the Tigers came away with a 25-19 win.
 
For their second match, UNF battled tough against No. 23 Michigan, taking one set and forcing multiple hard-fought points. Both Pridgeon and Jenkins reached double-digits in kills and had impressive hitting percentages for the match. Pridgeon registered a team-best 19 kills and hit .317, while Jenkins had 13 kills and hit .478. Claessens put up 43 assists. Defensively, Baran made a match-best 19 digs and Jenkins and Pantovic were each part of five block assists.
 
Four Wolverines reached double-figures for kills, with Lexi Erwin having a match-best 23. Molly Toon added in 11 and Ally Davis and Jennifer Cross each recorded 10. In addition to her 10 kills, Cross also made six block assists. Lexi Dannemiller recorded 50 assists. Tiffany Morales made 15 digs.
 
In the first set, Michigan got out to several four point leads early on, including at 10-6. UNF pulled to within one off a Jenkins kill that made it 10-9 in favor of Michigan. However, the Wolverines built up another five-point advantage, going ahead 15-10 on a Cross kill. The Ospreys eventually made it a two-point set, using a Pantovic-Jenkins block and a kill from Julie Trembley to cut Michigan's advantage to 18-16. However, the Wolverines outscore UNF 7-1 in the set's last eight points in order to take the first set 25-17 and hold a 1-0 lead in the match.
 
UNF came back with a powerful second set, hitting .462 and getting 13 kills. The Ospreys used a Cari Whitmire ace and back-to-back solo blocks by Jenkins to get out to a 3-0 lead.  UNF and Michigan then battled back and forth throughout the first part of the second set. Trailing by one, UNF used a Wolverine attack error to jumpstart a 4-0 run and go up 13-10 on a Jenkins kill.
 
Michigan chipped away at the Ospreys' lead in order to tie it at 14-14. A Pridgeon kill on the next point put the Ospreys' up by one, but an Erwin kill was the first of three-straight Michigan points that saw the Wolverines go up 17-15. The Ospreys answered with a three-point run to go ahead 18-17. UNF and Michigan continued to battle for the next few points, resulting in the set getting tied up at 19-19 on another Erwin kill. A Pridgeon kill sparked a critical 6-0 run for the Ospreys that allowed UNF to win the second set 25-19 and even the match 1-1.
 
In the third set, Michigan put together several runs en route to taking a late eight-point, 21-13 lead. Following a UNF timeout, a Pridgeon kill began a 5-0 run that allowed the Ospreys to slash Michigan's advantage down to three. Medina's ace during that run made it a 21-18 set. After Michigan built up a five-point, 23-18 lead, kills from both Pridgeon and Jenkins pulled UNF to within three. However, the Wolverines notched the set's final two points for a 25-20 set three win and a 2-1 advantage in the match.
 
In the fourth set, UNF had to contend with a hot-hitting Michigan team that recorded a .600 hitting percentage and made 16 kills. Michigan held several early leads, but with the Wolverines up 9-6, Pantovic had a kill that sparked a four-point run that saw UNF go up 10-9.
 
UNF and Michigan battled hard over the next few points, as there were six ties. The last tie occurred when Erwin's kill not only evened the match at 15-all, but also started a 4-0 Michigan run. The Wolverines took 18-15 lead. The Ospreys pulled to within two on two more occasions, but a three-point run gave Michigan enough space it needed in order to take the final set 25-18.
 
UNF finishes play at the 2012 Tiger Invitational against Nicholls State on Saturday. Match time is set for 5:30 EST.