Boxscore (PDF)
 
KENNESAW, Ga. – After being down two sets to Kennesaw State, University of North Florida rallied to force a decisive fifth set, but was unable to complete the comeback as the Owls took a 3-2 victory (25-15, 27-25, 22-25, 19-25, 15-12) at the KSU Convocation Center on Saturday afternoon.
 
"Kennesaw State played a pretty good match," said head coach Steve Loeswick. "We struggled to get them out of system with our serving. Our team still fought in sets two through five; unfortunately we were unable to make one or two plays at the end of the fifth set that would have given us the match. It was great to see new players step up and have very good offensive moments. I'm still very excited to see what this team will be able to accomplish as this season continues on."
 
Freshmen Carina Hoff and Morgan Van Alstine powered the Ospreys' offense with 15 kills each. Van Alstine also hit an impressive .667 (15 kills, one error, 21 total attempts), while Hoff was .464 (15 kills, two errors, 28 total attempts). Anna Budinska had a 12-kill, 15-dig double-double, while Abby Fesl tallied a 41-assist, 11-dig double-double. Cari Whitmire added 21 digs.
 
Kelly Marcinek had 18 kills and Toure Hopkins notchd a 13-kill, 21-dig double-double. Cierra Royster and Emily Bean added 15 and 10 kills, respectively. Sara Metroka put up 53 assists.
 
UNF had to contend with a consistent-hitting Kennesaw State team that hit .382 in the opening set. The Ospreys quickly found themselves trailing 8-1 after five Owl kills, two Owl blocks and one Osprey attack error. UNF was able to cut Kennesaw State's lead in half on back-to-back kills from Kelly Koop and Budinska to make it 9-5. However, that was the final time UNF was able to string together multiple points in the set as Kennesaw State was able to pull away and win the first set.
 
Tied at 11-11, the Ospreys had a four-point run that lifted them to a 15-11 advantage in the second set. The run was capped by a Budinska kill that gave UNF a four-point cushion. However, Kennesaw State responded with a 7-1 run and went up 18-16 on a Chade Martin kill. After battling over the next few points, a Budinska kill started a four-point Osprey run that saw UNF gain a 23-21 lead. The Owls used back-to-back kills from Royster and Marcinek to even the set at 23-23. Control for the set went back and forth between the teams before Kennesaw State ultimately ended the set with kills from Metroka and Marcinek and go up 2-0 in the match.
 
Coming out of the break, UNF had strong hitting in both the third and fourth sets in order to deadlock the match at 2-2. The Ospreys hit .300 in the third set and then .367 in the fourth.
 
With the exception of a 12-12 tie, UNF maintained a lead throughout much of the third set, not allowing Kennesaw State to take the lead. A kill from Hoff broke the 12-12 tie and UNF went up 14-12 on the next point after an Owl attacking error. Up by one a few points later, another kill from Hoff sparked a key three-point run as the Ospreys gained an 18-14 advantage. Although Kennesaw State eventually came to within one with UNF up 20-19, the Ospreys had another three-point run in order to regain a four-point lead. This time, a kill from Van Alstine started the run that resulted in UNF going up 23-19. Van Alstine eventually registered the set-winning kill to make it a 2-1 Owl lead for the match.
 
In the fourth set, UNF used three early three-point runs to separate itself from Kennesaw State and take a 13-8 lead. Kennesaw State battled back to make it a two-point set before a kill from Hoff and an Owl attacking error led to UNF holding a 16-12 advantage. After trading points, the Owls pulled to within two again, using a service ace to make it 20-18 in favor of UNF. However, a Van Alstine kill sparked a four-point Osprey run to make it 24-18. Kennsaw State stayed alive after a Metroka kill, but UNF ended the set and tied the match at 2-2 when Hoff slammed down the set-winning kill.
 
The fifth set was a battle between UNF and Kennesaw State with eight ties. With the set tied at 9-9, the Owls scored two quick points to break the tie. A block by Budinska and Van Alstine on the next point pulled UNF to within one, but Kennesaw State tallied two more quick points to go up 13-10. The Ospreys came to within two twice in the final points, including at 14-12 on an Owl attack error, but Royster recorded the match-winning kill on the next point to seal the match for Kennesaw State.
 
UNF returns to action on Friday night when the Ospreys host cross-town rival Jacksonville in the first of two SunTrust River City Rumble matches. Match time is set for 8 p.m., at UNF Arena.