#VB Rallies for 3-1 Win Over Mercer in Home Finale

Saturday, November 9

Jacksonville, Fla.

3 p.m.

University of North Florida

-1018, 610 ASun

Mercer

-126, 017 ASun

Mercer

North Florida

11/9/2013 5:42:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

By: North Florida Athletics

Boxscore (PDF)

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Despite a slow start, University of North Florida volleyball rebounded with a 3-1 (13-25, 25-14, 25-13, 25-15) victory over Mercer on Saturday afternoon in the Ospreys' 2013 home finale at UNF Arena.

"We came out a little sluggish and made a few unforced errors," said head coach Steve Loeswick. "I was happy with how we responded with sets two, three and four. We did a nice job serving and kept Mercer off-balance, so we were able to defend a few more balls. We had several players take nice swings and were able to pull it out.

"Any conference win is important and protecting your home court is important," added Loeswick. "It's a good way to send off our team and our two seniors. We're excited and going to practice hard this week for two important road matches next weekend."

After hitting .000 in the first set and making 10 errors, UNF came back to hit a combined .380 in the final three sets. For the match, the Ospreys had a .257 hitting percentage.

Anna Budinska led UNF with a 14-kill, 12-dig double-double, while Abby Fesl added a 32-assist, 18-dig double-double. Kelly Koop made 10 kills. Meanwhile, Cari Whitmire and Cameron McGuire added to the Ospreys' defense with 14 digs and seven blocks, respectively.

Molly Locked paced Mercer with 10 kills and 13 digs. Carly Iannarino put up 19 assists and Emily Rochefort recorded 18 digs.

Mercer used multiple early runs to distance itself from the Ospreys in the first set and held a 13-6 lead on a Jordan Collon kill. Morgan Van Alstine had a kill for the Ospreys on the next point, but the Bears went on an 8-0 run that led to a commanding 21-7 lead on a Locke-Gollon block. Although UNF was able to cut into Mercer's lead, the deficit was too large as a kill from Carolina Carlton gave Mercer the set and a 1-0 lead in the match.

UNF led from start to finish in the second set, using a 4-0 run to start the set. Mercer pulled to within two, but the Ospreys kept pulling away. Up 12-8, a Van Alstine kill sparked an 8-1 spurt that allowed the Ospreys to go up 20-9. After the Bears halted UNF's run with back-to-back points, UNF and Mercer swapped points for the remained of the set until a Budinska kill and a Bear attack error gave the Ospreys their final two points.

UNF came out with a hot-hitting third set that saw the Ospreys hit .520 and make 14 kills on 25 attempts and commit only one error. Multiple runs allowed UNF to pull away from Mercer throughout the set. After a 5-0 run, the Ospreys built up an eight-point lead, going up 16-8 on a Whitmire ace. UNF later used a pair of 3-0 runs to hold a 23-12 advantage before ultimately winning the set on two Mercer miscues.

The fourth set was close until UNF got back-to-back points on during several of its serving rotations. Up by three, consecutive kills from Carina Hoff allowed UNF to go up 15-10. After battling for the next few points, a Koop kill sparked a late five-point run that resulted in the Ospreys going up 22-13. After Mercer got kills from Cara Tripp and Molly Locke, UNF ended the match on a three-point run that included Van Alstine making the match-winning block.

UNF finishes the regular season on the road next weekend. The Ospreys begin their road trip at ETSU on Friday with a 7 p.m., match.