TAMPA, Fla. (October 5, 2006) ' The Rollins
Tars fell to the #4 University of Tampa Spartans 3-0 (30-26, 30-15,
30-17) on Thursday evening at the Bob Martinez Sports Center. This
is Rollins first four-game losing streak since August 2003. Outside
hitter Stephanie Nichols led the Tars overall with 10 kills and
eight digs. Ride-side hitter Lorena Orlandini added nine kills to
the offense, and Piper Young notched six kills and four digs.
For the Spartans, outside hitter Katelen Dixon led her team with
13 kills, one ace and seven digs.
Libero Sarah Schneider totaled 10 digs, while setter Lacey
Malarky had 29 assists.
In the first game, Nichols led the Tars with five kills and five
digs. Young followed with four kills, three digs and one block in
the 30-26 loss. Rollins (11-7, 3-4) and Tampa (20-1, 8-1) were
neck-and-neck in Game 1, but the Spartans were able to pull away at
26-21 and only allow Rollins to earn five more points in that
game.
Orlandini headed the offense in the second game with three kills
and two digs. The Tars had the #4 Spartans within their grasp at
8-8, but too many unforced errors hindered their chances of winning
Game 2 (30-15).
In the third and final game, Orlandini and Nichols each had
three kills, attempting to boost their struggling offense. Down 5-1
in Game 3, the Tars began to show signs of life, bringing the score
to 9-9. Rollins' hard-fought run ceased as Tampa finished off the
Tars 30-17.
The Tars will look to return to their winning ways on a weekend
road trip to South Florida to take on conference rivals Nova
Southeastern (6-14, 0-7) on Saturday, October 7 at 2:00 p.m. and
Lynn University (8-7, 3-3) on Sunday, October 8 at 2:00 p.m.
