Boxscore (PDF)
 
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Powered by double-digit kills from Tessa Alyman and Madison Hatcher, University of North Florida volleyball ended a six-match road swing with a 3-1 (25-21, 18-25, 25-20, 25-21) victory at Bethune-Cookman Tuesday night at Moore Gymnasium.
 
"It was nice to see people step up who haven't had the opportunity to do so in recent matches," said head coach Steve Loeswick. "I was really happy with how our team handled the pressure of playing in an intense and loud atmosphere. We know there are certain things that we have to improve on, but we're excited to finally return to our home court and can't wait to play in front of our fans this weekend."
 
UNF hit over .275 in each of the three sets that it won and had at least 14 kills in each of those sets.
 
Down by three late in the first set, UNF came out of a timeout and went on a four-point run to go up 19-18. A kill from Hatcher put the Ospreys up by one and capped the run. Although Bethune-Cookman tied it at 19-19 on an Osprey error, back-to-back scores provided UNF with a 21-19 advantage. UNF eventually used consecutive kills by Cameron McGuire to win the set 25-21 and take a 1-0 lead in the match.
 
Poor hitting and multiple Bethune-Cookman troubled the Ospreys in the second set. The Lady Wildcats had an 8-1 spurt that put them up 13-9. Although UNF was able to come to within three at 14-11 on a Bethune-Cookman error, the Lady Wildcats strung together multiple points on four of their next five service rotations. A kill from Rhea Simon put the Lady Wildcats at set point, which UNF fended off twice, but another kill from Simon ultimately ended the set and tied the match at 1-1.
 
UNF rebounded in the third set with a .375 hitting percentage. Trailing 17-15, a kill from Hatcher started a key 8-1 run that put the Ospreys ahead 23-18. Late in the run, Morgan Van Alstine served up consecutive aces that provided UNF with the five-point cushion. UNF and Bethune-Cookman traded points until Ambre Desaulnay's kill ended the set and allowed UNF to take a 2-1 match advantage.
 
An early 7-1 run in the fourth set quickly separated UNF from Bethune-Cookman. A kill from Abby Fesl started the run as the Ospreys took a 12-6 lead. Bethune-Cookman attempted to battle back and used a late four-point run to cut the deficit down to two. A Simon kill made it 22-20 in favor of UNF. An Edwards kill halted Bethune-Cookman's momentum and the Ospreys won the match on a Bethune attack error.
 
Alyman and Hatcher paced the Ospreys with 16 and 11 kills, respectively, and both hit over .250 for the match. Fesl put up 38 assists. Cari Whitmire and Desaulnay recorded 15 and 10 digs, respectively, while Van Alstine had six blocks and three aces.
 
UNF hit .259 for the match and recorded 54 kills and 55 digs for the match.
 
Delicia Pierre led Bethune-Cookman with a 15-kill, 12-dig double-double. Simon tallied 12 and hit .526. Hazel Ortiz-Rosado made 34 assists. Normarie Rolon made 17 digs.
 
Bethune-Cookman hit .204 with 48 kills and 57 digs.
 
UNF returns to its home court of UNF Arena on Friday against Kennesaw State. The match is a Pink Out and fans are encouraged to wear pink for breast cancer awareness. The Ospreys will be selling shirts to raise money for the 26.2 with Donna at the match. Shirts are $10 for short sleeve, $15 for long sleeve and $20 for both.