WINTER PARK, Fla. (March 21, 2021) - In easily their best game of the season, the Rollins Tars couldn't quite get over the hump, and lost by a final score of 3-0 to the Florida Tech Panthers on Tuesday evening.
The first set was incredibly close between the two squads, with neither team gaining an advantage of more than four points. The Panthers totaled 12 kills, and the Tars countered with 13 of their own. The turning point in the first set was eight attack and receiving errors committed by Rollins, which Florida Tech used to win 25-23.
Marlee Johnson led the Tars with four kills.
The Tars claimed an early lead in set two, going up by as many as three following five straight points to make the score 8-5. A substitution by the Panthers gave them momentum, however, and they scored four straight of their own to make it 9-8. The two teams traded blows from there on out before Tech was able to pull away and claim a 25-21 win. Rollins once again posted 13 kills compared to 11 for the Panthers, but errors cost the Tars.
The third set was equal to the first two in terms of competition. The two teams swapped leads nine times in the frame, and also had eleven tie scores.
Emily Diaz played inspired ball in the third set, tallying five kills on a number of hard-hit balls. Service errors proved to be the downfall of the Tars, as they collected six of them in the third set. Rollins, for the third time on the night, won the battle at the net, outscoring Tech 16-10. The Panthers were able to overcome, and took the third set 25-23.
Diaz and
Marlee Johnson each had thirteen kills to lead Rollins. The 42 total kills for the Tars was by far their highest mark through six games this spring. They also set a new high with 17 blocks on defense.
The Tars will have an extended break, and won't see the court again until April 9th when they travel to Tampa to face the Spartans.
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