No. 9 Tampa Send Sailfish Swimming, Advance to Second Round of NCAA South Regional

PENSACOLA, Fla. –  The No. 9 University of Tampa Spartans volleyball team took down SSC foe Palm Beach Atlantic, 3-0, at the UWF Fieldhouse on day one of the NCAA South Regional.

INSIDE THE MATCHUP:    

Final Score: No. 9 Tampa 3, Palm Beach Atlantic 0 (1: 25-18, 2: 25-20, 3: 25-22)   

Records: Tampa (29-2), Palm Beach Atlantic (18-14)    

Location: University of West Florida Field House || Pensacola, Fla.     

All-Time Series: Tampa currently leads the all-time series 17-5. 

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HOW IT HAPPENED:   

First Set: The game kicked off as a back-and-forth battle between the two teams as the score was tied 9-9. After that, Tampa went on a 16-7 run to close out the first set. Tampa's offensive attack in the first set was fueled by the play of Sarah Luoma, Kalli Cors, and Sorrel Houghton. | Score: 1-0 Tampa 

Second Set: The second set kicked off just like the first, as the score was just about even through the first 16 points. PBA ended up taking the lead at 20-19. The Sailfish did not record another point after that, and the Spartans closed the set out on a 6-0 run. | Score: 2-0 Tampa

Third Set: The story stays the same for the third set. They were all knotted up at 14-14. The Spartans received a huge contribution from Cors as she recorded six kills in the third set. The Spartans would go on to sweep the Sailfish, taking the third set by a score of 25-22. || Final: 3-0 Tampa

INSIDE THE STATS:   

• Katie McKiel paced the Spartan attack with 10 kills. Kalli Cors and Sorrel Houghton narrowly missed the double-digit kill mark with nine apiece.
• Two other Spartans posted five or more kills: Sarah Luoma and Mackenzie Dufresne.
• Claudia Rivera led the Spartan defense with a match-high 19 digs.
• Melissa Elias (22) and Emily Noe (16) combined for 38 assists.

UP NEXT: The Spartans continue their NCAA tournament quest with a matchup against Nova Southeastern on day two of the NCAA South Regional Saturday, December 4 at 6:00 PM.

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