Posted: Oct 12, 2023
By Pat Clines
Bradenton, Fla - The SCF volleyball team (11-7, 5-6 Sun Lakes South) continued to go on the winning path of their season as they shutout Trinity College of Florida (3-11, 3-2 NCCAA South) 3-0 (25-12, 25-7, 25-8) before defeating Webber International JV 3-1 (25-23,25-20,18-25, 25-20).
"We did amazing," said head coach Lynn Burnett. "Where we have faltered in the past matches, the energy has been off and on but this time the energy built up to the end."
"I thought there was a lot of energy and communication from both matches today," said sophomore Emily Lyons. "They gym was loud and the players on the bench fed into it to the six that played. We came together and communicated to our spots for the strategies we used."
"While the first match was good, I'm really happy that we pushed each other to get better," said freshman Morgan McGuire. "We were very scrappy and seeing some of the players who don't get much action show out today."
SCF vs Trinity:
Set one for was all Manatees as serving became the game for them as McGuire and sophomore Bailee Perry lead the way, while sophomores Isabella Rebimbas and Shelby Pillow lead the attack. Rebimbas would seal the first set with a kill.
The second and third were similar in way as McCaughey, McGuire and Rebimbas lead the way in the serving game. In the end, the Manatees sealed the second and third sets with kills by freshman Katrina Tallo sealing the deal.
Rebimbas would lead the Manatees offensively as she finished with a season-high 11 kills, nine digs and three aces. Pillow would follow with nine kills, one assist and three blocks, while Perry rounded out the order with seven kills, six digs, two blocks and a career-high four aces.
In setting, McGuire lead the way with her first 30 plus assist game as she finished with 32 assists, four digs, two kills and one ace.
Defensively in the back row, sophomore Kloe Pinto lead the way with a career-high 12 digs to go along with one assists and one ace.
Tallo (four kills, one ace and two blocks), McCaughey (four aces and two digs) and Lyons (four kills, one ace, seven digs and three blocks) also contributed in the match.
After SCF's first match, Webber International JV shutout Trinity 3-0 (25-16, 25-16, 25-14).
SCF vs Webber International JV:
Heading into the first set, the Manatees got off of to a rocky start as the Warriors would rattle them briefly as they tied the set at 23 apiece, but two critical errors from the Warriors gave the Manatees the first set.
In the second set, the Warriors would go up by as much as three points, but the Manatees stayed persistent and after back-to-back kills by sophomore Bailee Perry, they would regain the lead before Rebimbas sealed the second set with a kill.
In the third set, the Warriors were able to take advantage of several overpasses from the Manatees and would go up by as much as 11 points. The Manatees did manage to rally together some points, but it was not enough as the Warriors took the third set.
Heading into the fourth and final set, the Manatees kept their spirits high and regain steam after sophomore Amee Beedle stepped in to serve back-to-back aces before freshman Aleksandra Wrobel came in with kills of her own. The Warriors would cut the deficit, but ultimately it would not be enough as a final kill from Pillow would seal the deal for the win.
Rebimbas would lead the way offensively once again as she finished with her first double-double of the season of a new season-high 12 kills and 12 digs to go along with two aces, one assist and one block. Pillow would follow with a season-high 11 kills, one dig and one block, while Perry rounded out the order with 10 kills, seven digs, one ace, two assists and one block
"Bella would have had a double-double in both matches had Trinity ran their offense more in the first match," said Burnett on Rebimbas. "She did amazing nonetheless. She's very consistent and has matured so much from last year and is willing to step in to fill up a spot. I'm really proud of her overall."
In setting, McGuire would three digs.
"It felt great," said McGuire on her milestone. "It was a really good opportunity to be able to play front row and I'm glad I did well in it. Coach (Burnett) thought I did really good on that opportunity, but it was really fun to keep the energy going."
"Morgan has been hungry all season," said Burnett on McGuire. "She has been wanting to play the 5-1 rotation, so when we were practicing, I challenged her to be a leader and create the change in the atmosphere that she wanted to be able to run it and she did a great job doing mixing things up and ran a very efficient offense from every spot on the court while playing defense like no tomorrow."
Defensively, Pinto would lead the back row as she set a new career-high with 13 digs, three aces, four assists and one kill, while Lyons followed with seven digs to go along with four kills, one ace and two assists.
"I felt good connecting with people while playing as one body in one team," said Lyons. "It felt good to pull through when my team needed me and communicate with so much energy."
Beedle (two kills, two aces and three digs), McCaughey (one dig), Wrobel (five kills and two digs), Tallo (one dig and one block), Briefeneder (two kills, two digs and one block) and sophomore Caelan Cook (two kills and two digs) also contributed in the match.
Notes:
With her four blocks, Pillow has moved up to #12 all-time in career blocks in program history as she surpassed Sara Kartalovic (88, 2015-16), Emily Sauceda (89, 2018-19), Marion Vaucher (89, 2015-16), Lea Romaneschi (90, 2016), Maja Ristic (90, 2013-14) and Alexandra Karastihi (90, 2004-05). She will need two to surpass Adelene Jideofor (92, 2020-21) for 11th all-time.
With the two wins, the Manatees moved to double digit wins for the second straight season and now have a winning season for the first time since 2014.
Other Sun Lakes Conference Scores:
Palm Beach State (5-15, 5-6 Sun Lakes South) shutout South Florida State (5-10, 3-9 Sun Lakes South) 3-0 on Wednesday, October 11. Palm Beach State will take on St. Pete College Friday night, October 20 at 6 pm. Meanwhile, South Florida State has been eliminated from playoff contention after the loss.
Pasco Hernando State (12-8, 7-4 Sun Lakes South) shutout St. Pete College (1-13, 1-11 Sun Lakes South) 3-0 on Wednesday, October 11.
Lake Sumter State (12-8, 7-4 Sun Lakes North) shutout Florida State College at Jacksonville (6-12, 3-7 Sun Lakes North) 3-0 on Wednesday, October 11. The Lakehawks will take on #18 Gulf Coast State (12-4, 7-2 Sun Lakes North) Friday night, October 13 at 5 pm. The Blue Wave will take on Trinity Baptist College (1-17, 0-7 NCCAA South) Saturday afternoon, October 14 at 12 pm.
Sun Lakes Conference Standings:
North -
1. #8 Pensacola State (21-1, 9-0)
2. #18 Gulf Coast State (12-4, 7-2)
3. Lake Sumter State (12-8, 7-4)
4. St. John's River State (19-10, 6-4)
5. Florida State College at Jacksonville (6-12, 3-7)
South -
1. Pasco Hernando State (12-8, 7-4)
2. SCF (11-7, 5-6)
3. Palm Beach State (5-15, 5-6)
4. South Florida State (5-10, 3-9)
5. St. Pete College (1-13, 1-11)
Up Next:
The Manatees will wrap up their non-conference slate as they welcome Ave Maria University JV (2-3) to Hal Chasey Gymnasium Friday afternoon, October 13 at 4 pm. St. Pete College will also play Ave Maria at Hal Chasey Gymnasium at 2 pm, but will not play SCF.