BOCA RATON, Fla. -- Former Seabreeze high school standout Larissa Witherspoon recorded 17 kills and a .324 hitting percentage to lead NCAA Division II Lynn University to a 3-1 (22-30, 30-26, 30-16, 30-20) victory against Embry-Riddle University Thursday night.
After the Eagles came out strong and took the first game 30-22, Lynn countered with a much stronger effort in the second pulling away from ERAU late in the game 30-26. In the second there were 17 ties and seven lead changes and the two squads were knotted at 26-26, before Lynn scored the last four points on and Eagle attack error and three consecutive kills by Witherspoon, Deirdre Knobeloch and setter Megan Bedner. Knobeloch finished the match with 10 kills and Bedner added seven kills, 58 assists and nine digs on the evening.
After hitting over .200 in the first two games, the Eagles struggled offensively in the third hitting .000 with seven kills and seven errors in 37 attempts. This along with a surging Fighting Knights offensive unit which hit. 385 in the third, translated into a decisive 30-16 defeat in the third. Lynn scored six of the first seven points and maintained the strong advantage until ERAU cut the margin to 13-9. However, Lynn outscored Embry-Riddle 17-7 down the stretch propelled by Witherspoon and Melissa Roberts with five kills apiece to close out the game. Roberts finished the match with 14 kills and added 15 digs.
The final game was close early with the teams tied at 9-9, but Lynn went on a 13-4 run to build a 10-point cushion 22-12. Roberts and Witherspoon were once again leading the charge with five and four kills, respectively, while Sydney Taylor and Irmina Zamara added three kills apiece. Zamara finished with 13 kills and hit .455 for the match. Taylor, who finished with four critical late-match kills, got into the game after Carissa Erath went down with an ankle injury after getting tangled up with a teammate at the net.
Embry-Riddle was paced by the team's leading hitter Jenn Meglic who posted 12 kills without an error in 22 attempts and hit .545 for the match. Meglic added five block assists to go along with middle blocking partner April Ebanks who finished with six block assists and eight kills. Jenni Nelsen added 11 kills and a team-high 17 digs. Savannah Trakes finished with nine kills and 10 digs and setter Marissa Gonzales had 35 assists and eight digs. ERAU Libero Rachel Ridder finished with nine digs and two service aces.
The Eagles return to action tomorrow when they begin competition at the Palm Beach Atlantic University Tournament which concludes Saturday.
