DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The Embry-Riddle volleyball team dropped a five-set match to visiting Barry on Friday night, 25-23, 17-25, 27-25, 23-25, 10-15. With the loss, ERAU falls to 14-15 while the Buccaneers improve to 16-13.
 
Amanda Saunders led the Eagles with 15 kills and added seven digs and six blocks, while Asya Oguz had 11 kills and three digs. Olivia Roa led the team with 20 digs and Jordan Nakayama tallied a match-high 40 assists to go along with nine digs.
 
Barry jumped out to a 7-2 lead early in set one and maintained the lead for nearly the entire frame. The Eagles mounted a furious comeback, scoring six straight points to turn a 21-18 deficit into a 24-21 advantage. After BU fought off a pair of set points, Paola Virella clinched the set with a kill to give ERAU a 25-23 win.
 
The Bucs got off to another quick start in set two, winning five of the opening six points. The lead stayed on Barry's side of the net for the rest of the set, with ERAU able to close the gap to one point (15-14), but never draw even or take the lead as the Buccaneers took the set, 25-17, evening the match.
 
The Blue and Gold used a 10-2 run in set three to flip a 9-4 deficit into a 14-11 lead. The advantage would bounce back and forth for the rest of the set, with a total of eight lead changes. The Eagles took the lead late on a 3-0 run that pushed the home team ahead, 23-22, but Barry responded with back-to-back points to pull ahead to a 24-23 lead. A Saunders kill pushed the set into extra points at 24-24, and the Eagles were the beneficiaries of three straight BU errors to close out the set with ERAU on top, 27-25.
 
Set four saw numerous lead changes as well, with neither side able to establish a commanding advantage at any point. A 4-0 ERAU run gave the Eagles a 17-15 lead, but the Bucs came back with a 5-1 spurt to regain the lead, 21-19. After the Blue and Gold scored twice to tie it at 21, BU scored three in a row to earn set point at 24-21. Back-to-back blocks from Saunders and Laina Blanton got the Eagles within a point of tying it, but a Jaeda Allen kill put the set away in favor of the visitors, 25-23.
 
In the fifth, ERAU had slim leads numerous times in the early stages, but 7-6 was the latest the Blue and Gold would find itself ahead. Barry went on a 6-0 roll to take command of the set, 12-7, and the Bucs traded sideouts from then on to clinch a 15-10 win and a 3-2 match victory.
 
The Eagles return to the court one final time in 2016 to host Lynn tomorrow at 2 p.m. The match will be the final one for seniors Amanda Saunders and Asya Oguz, who will be recognized prior to the match.