By Pat Clines
New Port Richey, Fla - The SCF volleyball team (6-2, 2-1 Sun Lakes South) got back to the winning side of things as they defeated Pasco Hernando State (6-5, 2-1 Sun Lakes South) 3-1 (22-25, 25-15, 25-19, 25-17) at the PHSC Gymnasium in New Port Richey.
"Overall, the team played fantastic," said head coach Lynn Burnett. We recovered from a lot of mistakes and setbacks so quickly. I told the team 'Pasco Hernando wants to win, but we want it more. We had a lot of fun, played loose and got the job done."
"The team did very well overall," said sophomore Rachel Carroll. "Everyone played together super well and as a whole we worked super hard and clicked on the court. Our fight was what helped our team remain super focused. We all knew what we wanted and that was to win. Everyone had so much hustle and put their bodies on the floor to get the ball up. We all had so much energy and kept each other hyped up."
"I'm very happy with how we performed and started doing their part while trusting each other on the court," said freshman Morgan McGuire. "There was never a dull moment and we played very clean with lots of energy and hustle. After how close we were in the first set, it drove us to come back more disciplined and wanting to win even more."
The first set was incredibly tight between both teams as they exchanged several ties and lead changes. Ultimately, the Lady Bobcats would secure the first set after taking advantage of a few attack errors from the Manatees.
The Manatees were not going to let another set slip from them as they pushed themselves and secured the second set thanks to a kill by sophomore Katie Keefe.
The third set became all about the defense for the Manatees thanks to blocks from Keefe and freshmen Teresa Briefeneder and Kat Tallo. With a final kill by Keefe, the Manatees would take a 2-1 lead,
Heading into the final set, the Manatees kept their foot on the gas with their blocks from Briefeneder and strong back row defense from Carroll and sophomore Amee Beedle before Briefeneder sealed the deal with a final kill for a Manatee win.
Four Manatees had double digit kills on the offensive end. It was freshman Aleksandra Wrobel that would lead the way as she secured her first collegiate double-double with 14 kills, 12 digs, five aces, one assist and two blocks. Keefe would follow Wrobel with 13 kills, nine digs, four assists and three blocks.
Briefender and Beedle rounded out the order with a 11 and 10 kills respectively. Briefender (.833 hitting percentage) added a dig and a team-leading season-high five blocks (one solo), while Beedle added one ace, six digs and two blocks.
In setting, McGuire lead the way with one of her best outings as she finished with a double-double of 29 assists (season-high), 13 digs and two aces. Freshman Elise Bakken finished with 14 assists and five digs.
"I never toot my own horn, but I was feeling it that game," said McGuire. "Even from warming up, I knew it was going to be a good day and the I was so relaxed and had so much swag going into the game. I really trusted my hitters and they made me look so good. It was nice to finally connect defensively and move as a solid unit with the blockers and other defenders."
Defensively, apart from Wrobel and McGuire's digs, and Keefe and Briefeneder's blocks, freshman Kat Tallo added three blocks of her own to go along with two kills and a dig. Carroll finished with 10 digs and three assists from the back row.
"I felt very focused and wanted to show what I could give on the court," said Carroll. "I knew I wanted to get every ball and put in 100% effort. I felt confident with how I played in today's match and the energy and positivity on the court definitely helps."
Sophomores Bailee Perry (two digs and a block), Shelby Pillow (two blocks) and Caelan Cook (three kills, one ace, one assist, five digs and two blocks) and freshman Alanna McCaughey (three aces and one dig) also contributed in the match.
Other Sun Lakes Scores:
South Florida State (2-2, 1-2 Sun Lakes South) shutout Webber International JV (0-4) 3-0 Tuesday, September 12. The Lady Panthers will take on Pasco Hernando State Friday night, September 15 at 5 pm.
#18 Pensacola State (15-1, 3-0 Sun Lakes North) upset #3 Gulf Coast State (6-2, 2-1 Sun Lakes North) 3-0 in Panama City. The Pirates will take on Florida State College at Jacksonville Saturday afternoon, September 16 at 2 pm EDT (1 pm EDT). The Lady Commodores will take on Florida State College at Jacksonville Friday night, September 15 at 7 pm EDT (6 pm CDT).
St. John's River State (11-7, 1-2 Sun Lakes North) shutout Florida State College at Jacksonville (0-6, 0-2 Sun Lakes North) 3-0. The Vikings will take on Lake Sumter State (6-5, 1-2 Sun Lakes North) Saturday afternoon, September 16 at 1 pm.