Boxscore (PDF)
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – University of North Florida volleyball's season ended Saturday with a 3-1 (25-19, 21-25, 25-23, 25-20) loss at USC Upstate at the Hodge Center.
Morgan Van Alstine paced the Ospreys with 11 kills, while
Abby Fesl had a 30-assist, 16-dig double-double.
Kayla Eversgerd and Lexi Gober each recorded a double-double. Kayla Eversgerd had 15 kills and 14 digs, while Gober made 37 assists and 17 digs. Shannon Weiss and Alexa Lagaly added 12 and 11 kills, respectively. Morgan Page tallied 20 digs.
Although UNF had several early runs in the first set, USC Upstate responded with multiple late runs of its own. With the set tied at 14-14, the Spartans had a 5-1 run to take a 19-15 lead. After a kill from
Cameron McGuire pulled the Ospreys to within three, the Spartans had a three-point spurt and went up 22-16 on a Gober-Weiss block. UNF and USC Upstate traded points until the Spartans secured the win.
UNF scored multiple points on five of its first six service rotations in order to take a 13-10 lead. The Ospreys pushed their lead to five when an
Erin Edwards kill made it 17-12. A three-point run by the Spartans cut UNF's lead down tow two, but UNF later regained a five-point advantage when a
Madison Hatcher kill made it 22-17. Although USC Upstate brought the Ospreys' lead down to three, Van Alstine registered the set-winning kill as UNF tied the match at 1-1.
Several large runs to start the set by the Spartans had UNF trailing by 11 after a Weiss kill made it 15-4. UNF responded with a six-point run, closing the gap to five points with a McGuire ace making it 15-10. UNF eventually cut USC Upstate's lead down to two when Edwards had a kill that sparked a critical four-point Osprey run to make it 18-16. As the teams battled over the next few points, USC Upstate attempted to pull away and used a late three-point run to go up 23-18. UNF responded with a three-point run of its own to come to within two. McGuire had a kill and an ace and then the Ospreys used a Spartan attack error to make it 23-21. USC Upstate got to set point on an Osprey attack error, but UNF stayed alive with a kill from McGuire and a Fesl ace. However, Lagaly made the set-winning kill as USC Upstate took a 2-1 lead in the match.
USC Upstate used multiple runs to quickly distance itself from UNF in the final set. The Ospreys trailed by as many as nine as the Spartans went up 16-7 on an Eversgerd kill. A kill from
Anna Budinska on the next point sparked a 7-1 run that allowed UNF to cut the Spartans' lead down to three. However, that was the closest UNF could get for the rest match as USC Upstate answered with a three-point spurt to go up by six.
UNF finishes the season with a 10-20 record and a 6-12 mark in Atlantic Sun play.
