Lisenbee Reaches Milestone in 3-1 Win Over Eckerd

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – The No. 5 University of Tampa volleyball team used a historic day from Marissa Lisenbee to thwart the Eckerd College upset attempt in four sets. The 3-1 victory marked the 1000th kill for senior Lisenbee, who finished the match with 17 to lead UT to victory over Eckerd in the McArthur Center, Tuesday.

The Spartans improve to 21-4 overall with a 10-1 Sunshine State Conference tally while the Tritons fall to 13-11, 4-7 in conference play.

Right side hitter Lisenbee became the 19th player in Tampa volleyball history to reach the 1000 kill milestone. The outside hitting tandem of Berkley Whaley and Allee Stelogeannis contributed 11 and 10 kills respectively, as the Whaley spun a double-double effort with 17 digs.

Junior Gina Clarke posted her own double-double performance, assisting 41 attacks while contributing 18 digs, three blocks and a service ace.

Defensively, the Spartans were led by libero Logan Holanchock from the back row, as the freshman totaled 23 digs to lead Whaley and Clarke. At the net, the middle blocking presence of Jessica Wagnerand Demery Zachery kept the Tritons at bay, blocking five attacks each.

Lisenbee started the first set with a bang by notching five kills, including her career 1000th. Clarke tuned the attack and led the defense in the opening frame, narrowly missing a double-double in the first set alone. The setter posted 10 assists while leading all players on the court in the premier frame with nine digs. Outside hitter Whaley added three kills as UT rolled to a 25-17 win to start the match.

Eckerd rallied in the second stanza, jumping out to an 8-2 lead to force a Tampa timeout. EC outside hitter Tjasa Kotnik was the catalyst, as the senior blasted five kills. The Tritons continued the nightmare by extending its lead to 16-3 before Tampa returned to form. The early deficit proved too deep for the Spartans to climb, dropping the second stanza 25-13 to even the match at one set each.

The Spartans stormed back with a vengeance in the third set, hitting at a .429 team attack percentage behind the dual threat of Stelogeannis and Wagner. The duo each grounded three kills without committing an error in the stanza. Clarke kept the high-tempo with 12 assists while combining with Wagner for a pair of momentum-shifting blocks to take the set 25-13.

Both squads fought tooth-and-nail in the fourth frame as Tampa came away with a 27-25 win to seal the Spartan victory.

Tampa will hit the road for the final time this season, meeting No. 14 Palm Beach Atlantic on Friday at 7 p.m. in West Palm Beach, Fla. before facing Barry on Saturday with a 4 p.m. matinee in Miami Shores, Fla. Live stat links will be made available through www.tampaspartans.com.

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