Rollins Seals the Deal with Convincing 15-6 Set Five Win
Winter Park, Fla. (October 19, 2017) – After finding themselves heading to a fifth set against Lynn University, the Rollins volleyball team left no doubt as they took down the Fighting Knights in the decisive set by a final score of 15-6 to secure the 3-2 (26-28, 25-22, 25-22, 15-6) victory on Thursday night in Warden Arena. The win advances the Tars to a record of 8-10, and 5-6 in Sunshine State Conference action, while Lynn drops to 4-11, and 2-7 against SSC opponents.
The Tars were led by Bri Civiero, who posted a team high 19 kills and added 15 digs for her eighth double-double of the season. Shannon McDonough notched her 13th double-double of 2017 with 16 kills and 16 digs, while Madison Jenkins tallied a new career high in kills with 10. Rebecca Wilson walked away from the night with a team best 18 digs, while Cassidy Cason earned a season high 55 assists to lead the squad. Out of Rollins' 16 total blocks, Kerra Tirado and Cassidy Cason earned four each as they both put up two solo blocks and three assisted stops. Mary Bethany Vincent matched the duo in assisted blocks with three, while McDonough and Jenkins put up two apiece.
Lynn saw a match high 20 kills from Rafaela Fonseca, followed by Sonja Udovcic with 17. Both added double-digit dig counts on the night for double-doubles, as Fonseca earned 19, and Udovcic tallied a team best 24. Andrea McDonald amassed 22 digs of her own, followed by Jaja Perkins with 10. Nicol Colonna led the team in assists with 39, while Alessia Di Rosa earned 12. The Fighting Knights posted 18 blocks as a team, led by Lauren Odom and Marcell De Vuono with five each. De Vuono earned the team's only two solo stops on the night.
COACH ROBINSON'S THOUGHTS:
"I thought Lynn played really aggressive defense tonight which led to us making more errors than we typically make. Overall, it was a lower energy game for us than usual, but I was pleased to see us find that energy in the fifth set."
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Set One: Rollins opened up with an 8-5 lead, but the Fighting Knights fought back to tie the set at 9-9. Both teams traded blows, seeing the score tied at 13-13 before Lynn notched three straight to take a 16-13 lead. Rollins broke the run of a kill by McDonough off of an assist by Cason, but the Fighting Knights answered back with two more to extend their advantage to 18-14. The Tars went on to out-score Lynn 6-1 in the ensuing plays to take a 20-19 lead, but Lynn capitalized on an attack error by the Tars to pull even, 20-20. The Tars pulled out to a 23-20 lead, but Lynn answered back and both teams found themselves even once again with a score of 24-24 before the Fighting Knights pulled back into the lead, 25-24 on an attack error by Madison Jenkins. The score was tied one last time at 26-26 before Lynn fired off two straight kills to take the first set, 28-26.
- Set Two: After Lynn opened up to a 2-1 advantage, the Tars rattled off eight straight to take a 9-2 lead before Lynn was able to halt the run on a kill by Udovcic. Lynn outscored Rollins in the following plays, 8-2, pulling to within one of the Tars, 11-10, before a service error gave the Tars control. The set saw more back and forth action to tie the score at 17-17 before Rollins found the lead once again by outscoring Lynn 5-1 to pull out to a 22-18 advantage. Lynn pulled back to within two, 22-20, off of two straight solo blocks by De Vuono, and closed the gap to one, 22-21 on an attack error by McDonough. That point for the Fighting Knights proved to be their last of the set, as a kill by McDonough advanced the Tars to set point, and an attack errof by Fonseca gave the Tars a 25-22 victory in the second set.
- Set Three: The Tars opened up to a 4-1 lead, but Lynn was not about to back down, pulling even with Rollins at 5-5 and taking their first lead of the set on a ball handling error by Cason to take the 6-5 advantage. Both teams traded points, setting the scoreboard at 7-6 in Lynn's favor, but three straight points for the Tars gave them a 9-7 lead. Lynn bounced back with two straight to tie the set at 9-9, but the Tars outscored the Fighting Knights 2-1 in the following plays to pull ahead to a slim 11-10 lead. Rollins hit their stride, scoring five straight to pull ahead 16-10 before a kill by Udovcic halted the sprint and pulled Lynn to within four, 16-11. Rollins continued to build their lead, holding on to a 24-16 advantage, but six straight points by the Fighting Knights pulled them back to within two of the Tars, 24-22. Cason was able to secure the 25-22 third set win on a kill, giving Rollins the 2-1 match lead.
- Set Four: Lynn opened up to a 7-2 lead, but Civiero broke the run with a kill to pull the Tars to within four, 7-3. The Fighting Knights continued to get the better of the Tars, pulling out to a 19-13 lead. Rollins called a timeout to halt the momentum, and came out of the break to see Tirado enter the game an earn a big kill to pull the Tars back to within five, 19-14. Lynn responded with two points, but the Tars saw a kill from McDonough to set the scoreboard at 21-15. Udovcic answered back, but a block by Tirado and Cason gave the Tars the sideout. With Tirado on the serve, the Tars tallied three straight points, to pull to four, 22-18, but a kill by Fonseca put the Fighting Knights ahead 23-18. Both teams traded blows to put Lynn on the cusp of set point, 24-19, but a kill by Vincent kept the Tars in the match, 24-20. Out of a timeout called by the Tars, the Fighting Knights earned set point on a kill by Fonseca, 25-20.
- Set Five: Lynn ran out to a 4-1 lead, but four straight points by the Tars gave them the slight 5-4 advantage. The Tars outscored Lynn in the following plays, 4-1 to pull out to a four point lead, 9-5, before both teams traded blows to set the score at 10-6. A kill by Fletcher gave the Tars the 11-6 led, and a setting error by Colonna set the score at 12-6. A block by Tirado, followed by an ace by Becker put the Tars on the cusp of match point, and a kill by Cason gave the Tars the 15-6 decisive set victory for the 3-2 match win.
NOTES:
- With the win, the Tars are now 24-17 all-time against the Fighting Knights.
- Civiero notched her 17th match with double-digit kills, including her 12th straight.
- McDonough notched her 16th match with double-digit kills, and has posted 15 straight with double-digit kill counts.
- McDonough earned her 13th double-double of the season.
- Civiero notched her eighth double-double of her senior season.
- Civiero is only six digs away from notching her 1000th of her career.
- Cason notched a new season high in assists with 55
- Madison Jenkins earned a new career high in kills with 10
NEXT UP:
- Date: Tuesday | October 24, 2017
- Opponent: Florida Tech
- Location: Clemente Center | Melbourne, Fla.
- Time: 7:00 p.m.
- Coverage: LIVE STATS | VIDEO
Fans can follow Tars volleyball all season long with live audio and video on the Tars Sports Network at RollinsSports.com, where the latest news, updates, and information on the Rollins volleyball team can also be accessed. Fans can also stay up-to-date on the latest #TARnation news by following Rollins Sports on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
