Boxscore (PDF)
Atlantic Sun Insider: Digging Deep for Success
FORT MYERS, Fla. – University of North Florida volleyball dropped 3-0 (19-25, 15-25, 17-25) mid-week match at Florida Gulf Coast on Tuesday night at Alico Arena.
“Florida Gulf Coast is a very talented team. They came out with a lot of emotion for their first home match and we were unable to match their intensity tonight,” said head coach Steve Loeswick.
Paige Pridgeon led UNF with match-high 11 kills.
Nicole Baran made 10 digs, while
Britt Claessens recorded 15 assists.
Olivia Mesner and Jill Hopper each recorded a team-best eight kills for Florida Gulf Coast. Gigi Meyer put up 21 assists, while Whitney Masters made 12 digs.
UNF erased a four-point deficit midway through the first set. Trailing 14-10, a key three-point run pulled the Ospreys to within one. UNF tied it at 15-15 on a Claessens service ace. Both teams battled over the next few points, but with Florida Gulf Coast up 20-19, the Eagles concluded the set with a five-point run.
Several scoring spurts allowed Florida Gulf Coast to pull away from the Ospreys in the second set. After back-to-back points allowed the Ospreys to tie the set at 11-11, UNF was unable to get multiple points throughout the remainder of the set. Meanwhile, Florida Gulf Coast had one three-point run and several two-point stretches before ending the set on another five-point run.
In the third set, UNF attempted to come back from an eight-point deficit in the late in the set. A kill by Pridgeon sparked a four-point Osprey run that made it 18-14 in favor of Florida Gulf Coast. However, that would be the closest UNF could get for the rest of the set as the Eagles started a costly seven-point run on the next point.
UNF returns to action on Friday when the Ospreys visit cross-town rival Jacksonville in this season's first SunTrust River City Rumble. Match time is set for 7 p.m., at Swisher Gymnasium.
