No. 4 Spartans Sink Buccaneers to Stay Perfect

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. – No. 4 Spartans keep their win streak alive after defeating SSC rival Buccaneers, who ended the Spartans' 2022 season.

Final Score: Tampa 3 (1: 31-33, 2: 25-21, 3: 25-17, 4: 25-22), Barry 1

Records: No. 4 Tampa (9-0, 3-0 SSC), Barry (3-6, 0-3 SSC) 

Location: Coach Odio Court| Miami Shores, Fla.

HOW IT HAPPENED: 

First Set: The beginning of the first set was filled with back-and-forth action with no team carving out a lead greater than two points. A heads-up dig from Kalli Cors knotted the set at 12-12, but the Buccaneers, aided by a strong home crowd, took the lead back at 15-13 which resulted in a Coach Catanach timeout. Tampa didn't allow Barry to continue building on their lead as a strong kill from Jenna Davis put the Spartans behind by only one, which signaled a timeout from Barry's Coach Yelin, with the score being 19-18 in favor of the Bucs. The end of the first set mirrored the beginning as neither team could take more than a one-point lead. The Spartans finally took the lead at 23-22 headed into another timeout from the Bucs, but two quick errors from Tampa, and a subsequential timeout, put the Bucs back on top. The thrilling first set continued well past the 25-point mark, with Barry giving the final blow after a total of 11 lead changes. | Score: 33-31 (Barry)

Second Set: Looking to get back on track after a grueling 45-minute first set, the Spartans were keeping up with the Bucs to start the second set, with the biggest deficit being only 2-0. In the middle of the set, the Spartans allowed the Bucs to go on a 4-0 run, which gave them the lead at 14-11. However, the Spartans responded perfectly with 3 straight points including an ace from Zoey Seput  which sent the set into a Barry timeout. The Spartans maintained their offensive pressure which gave them the late-set lead at 21-19 as Barry called their final timeout with hopes of stealing the set. But the Spartans prevailed, closing out the set on a 6-2 run which was capped off by Nathaly Perez and a perfect kill. | Score: 25-21 (Tampa)

Third Set: Unlike the first two sets, Tampa took a quick 4-0 lead in the third set, following 2 aces from Tess Schrenger but Barry wasn't showing any signs of backing down. It wasn't until Tampa took an 11-8 lead that the Bucs decided to call their first timeout of the set. Shortly after the timeout, back-to-back kills from Mackenzie Dufresne extended the Spartan lead to 14-9, as the Bucs called yet another timeout. Tampa's lead grew to as big as 21-12 in the set but after a short 4-0 run from Barry, Coach Catanach's late-set timeout got the Spartans back on course as they closed out the set, in which they never trailed. | Score: 25-17 (Tampa)

Fourth Set: As the two teams headed into the fourth set, the Spartans, who had only played in two other fourth sets so far this season, had their eyes on maintaining their perfect record. The set began with alternating changes in the lead, just as the other sets, but Tampa gained some room to breathe after a kill from Perez put them up 12-9 as Barry called a timeout. After the break, the Bucs proved that they weren't finished yet as they tied the set at 14 all, and the Spartans called timeout. Tampa found themselves trailing late in the set, down 22-20 and called a second timeout. The Spartans were able to tie the set at 22-22, before back-to-back kills from Perez and Schrenger closed out the set, as well as the match. | Score: 25-17 (Tampa)

INSIDE THE STATS: 

• Kalli Cors (16,18) and Tess Schrenger (17,19) each recorded a double-double with kills and digs
• Zoey Seput and Emily Noe tallied 26 and 22 assists, respectively
• Tess Schrenger recorded a hitting percentage of .368