DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Embry-Riddle volleyball dropped a tough match to No. 3 Tampa on Friday, with set scores of 18-25, 23-25 and 23-25.
The Eagles (14-7, 7-5 SSC) moved from a 5-3 deficit to an 8-6 lead in the second set, but the Spartans (20-1, 12-0 SSC) still took the set 25-23 before closing the match by the same margin in the third. ERAU finished with 34 kills, 47 digs and seven total blocks, while UT hit .171 with 37 kills to Embry-Riddle's .085. ERAU had stretches of rally scoring, including a 7-of-8 run and a sequence that turned a two-point deficit into a lead, but Tampa finished ahead in blocks, digs and service aces.
The Eagles worked back after Tampa built an 8-1 lead, winning seven of eight rallies from a 10-3 deficit to pull within 11-10 in the first set. Lindsey Smith put down two early kills, and the comeback push included a block by Smith and
Haley Manjack, kills from
Kailey Hrbek,
Ashlyn Koerner,
Dakota Zieman and Manjack, and a
Maddey Cruse service turn that covered the final four points of the run. Tampa answered by stretching the score from 11-10 to 17-11 as ERAU committed three attack errors and surrendered a service ace during that stretch. The Blue and Gold continued to get points from Hrbek, Smith,
Stella Weisbrod and Manjack, but Tampa took three of the final four rallies to finish the set 25-18.
ERAU nearly erased Tampa's late set-point cushion in the second set, scoring three straight from 24-20 before Tampa finished the set 25-23. After falling behind 5-2 to start, the Eagles answered with kills from Smith, Manjack and Weisbrod, then moved ahead 8-6 after Zieman's kill and a Tampa attack error. Tampa responded to go back in front, but Embry-Riddle pulled within 13-12 behind a Zieman kill and a block by Smith and Hrbek. After the Spartans built a 21-16 lead, the Blue and Gold made another push with a Manjack kill, Koerner's block and Cruse's ace to get within 21-20, then fought off three set points before Tampa closed the set.
The Eagles pushed back from set point with kills by Manjack and Cruse to get within 24-23, but Tampa closed the set on a Mak Carter kill for a 25-23 result. Earlier, ERAU opened with three straight points on kills by Koerner, Hrbek and Smith before Tampa answered with six consecutive points to take a 7-4 lead. Zieman helped Embry-Riddle work back through the middle of the set with kills that tied it at 10-10 and 11-11, and
Ashley Lunt's ace tied it again at 15-15 before a Tampa error put the Eagles in front 16-15. Koerner teamed with Manjack and later Hrbek on blocks as the Blue and Gold continued to counter Tampa, but the visitors moved ahead 22-19 and held off the late push to win the third set 25-23.
Inside the Statistics
- Zieman finished with 10 kills, 13 digs and 10.5 points to surpass 300 total points this season.
- Zieman has recorded at least 10 kills in six consecutive games.
- Koerner recorded 26 assists, five digs and a season-high two solo blocks while adding two kills.
- Koerner has tallied at least 26 set assists in six consecutive games and reached 750 set assists on the year.
- Taylor Fonseca collected 11 digs and added one assist.
- Smith tallied eight kills and two block assists.
- Hrbek has achieved a hitting percentage of at least .429 in three consecutive games.
Up Next
The Eagles host Florida Southern on Saturday, Oct. 24, at 4 p.m. ET at the ICI Center.
