#VB Drops 3-1 Match to Georgia on Day One of Benson's Group Invitational

Friday, September 13

Athens, Ga.

7 p.m.

University of North Florida

3-5

Georgia

6-1

North Florida

Georgia

#VB Drops 3-1 Match to Georgia on Day One of Benson's Group Invitational

9/13/2013 10:39:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

By: North Florida Athletics

Boxscore (PDF)
UNF-UNC Greensboro Live Stats
UNF-Louisiana Live Stats
Roadtrippin' With The Ospreys

ATHENS, Ga. – University of North Florida volleyball began the Benson's Group Invitational with a 3-1 (25-23, 25-27, 25-13, 25-20) loss to host Georgia Friday evening at the Stegeman Coliseum. The Ospreys are the first team in 2013 to force Georgia to play more than three sets in a match.

"We played an inspired match," said head coach Steve Loeswick. "We still gave up a few too many easy points, but we had flashed of really good play against a very good team. We play two more very good teams tomorrow and are looking forward to another opportunity to get better."

UNF made 41 kills and hit .136 for the match. The Ospreys also tallied 13.0 total blocks. Seniors Anna Budinska and Britt Claessens each recorded a double-double in the match. Budinska's 16 kills and 15 digs marked her fourth double-double of the season. Claessens picked up her first double-double of 2013 with a 29-assist, 10-dig double-double. Junior Cari Whitmire dug a match-high 31 balls, while junior Cameron McGuire tallied a career-high nine blocks.

Georgia hit .150 on the night and made 48 kills. Brittany Northcutt tallied a 12-kill, 15-dig double-double, while Stacey Smith made 11 kills. Kaylee Kehoe put up 23 assists and Allison Summers notched 18 digs.

The first set was close with 15 ties and the largest lead being three. Georgia held three late three-point leads, including at 21-18 on a block from Tirah Le'au and Elena Perri. UNF took advantage of a Bulldog service error and an attack error and got an ace from Whitmire in order to even the set at 21-21. The Ospreys and Georgia traded points with UNF taking a 23-22 lead on a Budinska kill. However, the Bulldogs ended the set on a three-point run in order to go up 1-0 in the match.

UNF battled from being down early in the second set and used a critical four-point run to go up 18-16. With Georgia up by two, the Ospreys capitalized on three Bulldog attack errors and Kayla Fessler served up an ace during the run. Georgia came back to take a 22-21 lead on an Osprey miscue, but UNF ultimately won the set due to its blocking abilities. Facing set-point, freshmen Carina Hoff and Morgan Van Alstine denied Le'au's attack in order to tie the set at 25-25. A block from McGuire and Kelly Koop on the next point gave UNF the one-point lead. A solo block from McGuire then ended the set as the match was tied 1-1.

Georgia used multiple runs in order to capture the third set. The Ospreys were able to cut an eight-point deficit down to four. A McGuire kill made it 14-10 in favor of Georgia, but that was as close as the Ospreys could get. The Bulldogs strung together multiple points on each of their last four serving rotations and went up 2-1 in the match.

The fourth set was another close one to start, but a mid-set run allowed Georgia to pull away. With UNF up 13-12, a Chloe Buckendahl started a four-point run that resulted in the Bulldogs taking a 16-13 lead. Although UNF came to within two on the next play due to a Georgia service error, the Ospreys were only able to get back-to-back points on two occasions, including at match-point when Budinska recorded straight kills. However, Georgia captured the set and the match on a Smith kill.

UNF wraps up play at the Benson's Group Invitational on Saturday with matches against UNC Greensboro (10 a.m.) and Louisiana (4 p.m.)