Volleyball Secures Conference Win Over South Florida State

By Pat Clines

Bradenton, Fla - The SCF volleyball Team (1-2, 1-2 Sun Lakes) secured their first win of the season, first win at home and first win in Sun Lakes Conference play under a new era as they came from behind to defeat South Florida State (0-3, 0-3 Sun Lakes) 3-2 (19-25, 24-26, 25-18, 25-19, 15-12).

"Overall, today's game was great," said head coach Courtney Bobo-McKenzie. "We were a little nervous when we first started off, but I'm glad we finally found something that worked. The last two games, we were going through a lot of rotations to see what works for our team and I'm glad we found it and through that we were able to fight and finish. Even though we were down two to three points the last two games, we clicked with the setter/hitter connection and we ended up with the victory in the last three sets."

"I thought the setter/hitter connection was so much better and we meshed together a lot more," said freshman Sabrina Calhoun. "We really worked together and the energy on the court and on the bench was amazing. It was a really great team win overall."

"The first two sets, we did start off too slow to get back into the match for momentum," said freshman Aryanna Spainhower. "From the end of those games, we came back and fought hard to secure the win."

The first set saw the Manatees get into a little bit of trouble as the Panthers took advantage of hitting in the middle. By the second set, the Manatees started mounting some strong defense in the front row thanks to sophomores Katrina Tallo and Jaycie Sheean, but it would be to no avail with the Panthers taking the set.

At the start of the third set, the Manatees would gain their momentum thanks to kills by Calhoun and Spainhower. As the score went 15-13 SCF, Tallo would get the Manatees' rally going behind the line. With her serving and strong attacks by Calhoun and Spainhower, the Manatees would pull off with the third set after a Panther attack error.

In the fourth set, the Manatees got off to a slow start, but Tallo's defense and offense by Calhoun, Spainhower and Sheean kept the Manatees' spark going. When the Manatees tied the score at 16 all, Sheean would put together a 6-0 run before a Calhoun and a Panther attack error gave the Manatees the fourth set and force a fifth.

In the final set, the Manatees struggled briefly as the Panthers tied the set at 11 apiece, but after a timeout by Bobo-McKenzie the Manatees found their momentum as sophomore Morgan McGuire would seal the victory with a final kill in the back right corner for the win.

Three Manatees lead the way offensively. It was Spainhower that would lead the way overall as she secured her first collegiate double-double of 16 kills and 25 digs while also adding one assist and one ace.

"I felt like I played an amazing game," said Spainhower. "Me and my setters did very well, especially when we're running a fast ball down the middle. For getting a double-double, it's obviously really impressive for a game and hope to beat my record now and surpass it."

"I always believed that Aryanna would make a big impact as a local player," said Bobo-McKenzie on Spainhower. "She's a strong player with a lot of energy."

Calhoun would follow with 14 kills, three digs and one ace while Sheean rounded out the order with 10 kills, one ace, four digs and one block.

"I played great," said Calhoun. "While I just came back from an injury, it was great to play and come back out not worrying about getting hurt while playing and being able to execute on the court."

McGuire would secure her eighth career double-double as she finished with 34 assists, 17 digs, two kills, one ace and four blocks (one solo).

"I'm proud that Morgan came in as our sophomore setter for the match," said Bobo-McKenzie on McGuire. "She really showed some leadership and took control of her game."

Defensively, apart from Spainhower and McGuire, Tallo and freshmen Johaliz Colon and Sarah Stouky had 11, 14 and 15 digs respectively with Tallo adding two kills and two blocks, while Colon adding two assists and Stouky adding three assists.

Freshmen Adasyn Konopka (two kills, four assists and seven digs), Natalie Schwenk (two aces and nine digs) and Immani Brown (three kills, two assists, two digs and one block) also contributed in the match.

Notes:

1. This was Bobo-McKenzie's first win as the head coach for the Manatees.

2. With her 25 digs, Spainhower was named to the FCSAA 25 Dig Club.

3. With her 34 assists, McGuire now has 534 career assists and needs 63 more to surpass Sanja Vojnovic (596, 2015) for 17th all-time

Sun Lakes Conference Standings:

1. Palm Beach State (8-1, 3-0)

2. #9 Gulf Coast State (9-2, 3-0)

3. #10 Pensacola State (8-3, 2-1)

4. St. Pete (4-3, 2-1)

5. Pasco-Hernando State (3-7, 2-1)

6. #25 St. John's River State (9-6, 1-1)

7. Indian River State (5-4, 1-2)

8. SCF (1-2, 1-2)

9. Lake Sumter (4-2, 0-2)

10. Florida State College at Jacksonville (3-7, 0-2)

11. South Florida State (0-3, 0-3)

Up Next:

The Manatees will head to the panhandle for their next two games as they travel to Panama City to face #9 Gulf Coast State Friday night, September 13 at 7 pm eastern (6 pm central) before heading to Pensacola to take on #10 Pensacola State Saturday afternoon, September 14 at 2 pm eastern (1 pm central).