MELBOURNE, Fla. – The Saint Leo volleyball team pushed their win-streak to four games as the Lions defeated Florida Tech 3-1 (25-18, 25-17, 17-25, 25-18) in Sunshine State Conference action from Florida Tech's Clemente Center on Saturday afternoon.
With the win, the Lions draw their conference record to an even 5-5 while jumping to 12-10 overall. Florida Tech drops to 6-17 and 2-8 in the SSC.
As has been the case the entire season, the Lions' day was decided early when the Green and Gold came out on fire and breezed through the first two sets, hitting .322 en route to the two-set advantage. The brief intermission between sets seemed to cool off the Lions' hot hand as Saint Leo dropped set three and needed to regroup. Head Coach Sam Cibrone snapped the Lions back into focus as they easily claimed the fourth set win.
Sophomore Jordan Sisson led the Lions with a .474 average and freshman Lauren Campbell dropped in 12 kills. Sisson and freshman Tawni Warren posted 11 kills apiece as the trio of Lions broke into double digits. Behind them was senior Danielle Bletso with a seven kill effort, but it was a stellar defensive effort that put her on the map with a total of nine blocks, including four solos. Despite being matched by the Panthers defensively, senior Emily Calderon-Reyes still managed 22 digs and six assists.
Kaitlin Brennan led the Panthers with 13 kills. Janelle Branch chipped in 10 and committed two attack errors in 24 attempts for a .333 hitting percentage.
Saint Leo hit .220 for the match, while limiting FIT to a .166 hitting percentage. Alexa Reed had four of the team's 10 service aces.
Saint Leo returns home as the Lions host Rollins on Wednesday evening. Match time is set for 7:00 p.m. at the Marion Bowman Activities Center. For the latest news, updates, and information on Lions Volleyball, visit SaintLeoLions.com.
