WINTER PARK, Fla. (March 12, 2021) - In their first game action in nearly 16 months, Rollins volleyball fell to the Tampa Spartans in three sets at the Alfond Sports Center on Friday night.
Freshman
Emily Diaz earned the first kill of her career, and of the Tars season, to tie things yup at one early on. However, Rollins fell behind quickly, showing some rust by committing 13 attack errors. Tampa also bested the Tars offensively, earning eight kills compared to Rollins four in set one.
The second set was closer, and showed the promise of the young Tars roster. Six of the eleven actives are freshman, all of whom saw time on the court tonight. The teams swapped leads twice, and also had the score tied twice before Tampa was able to pull away behind five kills each from Sorrel Houghton and Kalli Cors. Six different Tars recorded a kill in set two, but it was not enough as Rollins fell 25-17.
The final set also went Tampa's way as their veteran frontline continued to punish the ball at the net. Sarah Luoma added six kills to her ledger in set three.
Emma Begley tried her best to match her, scoring four points for Rollins, but it was not enough as the Tars fell 25-11.
"Credit goes to Tampa for a great job serving tough and keeping us on the defensive all night," said head coach
Mika Robinson. "This was the first collegiate match for half of our roster, so we expected some nerves. We just thought we would settle in and find our rhythm, but we struggled to do that due in large part to Tampa's execution. We look forward to getting back to work this week."
The Tars will have more than a week to prep before their next match. On Saturday, March 20, Rollins will host both Saint Leo and Palm Beach Atlantic in an all-day tri-match starting at 1 pm. As always, fans can
watch live on the Sunshine State Conference Network.
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