FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Saint Leo volleyball team went toe-to-toe with the 17^th-ranked Nova Southeastern Sharks Thursday night in Fort Lauderdale falling 3-1 in Sunshine State Conference action. The Lions took home victory in the second set and nearly won the fourth set to force a fifth and deciding set but the Sharks were able to pull out the victory 25-22.
 
The loss drops the Lions' record to 9-15 overall and 3-10 in SSC play while the Sharks improved to an impressive 19-2 on the year including 11-1 in league action.
 
Junior Madi Certain and sophomore Jeanette Henderson led the Lions offense as they finished with 11 and 10 kills, respectively. Certain tallied her 11 kills on 23 swings while hitting for a .348 percentage. She added a service ace, eight digs and a pair of blocks. Henderson achieved her 10 kills on just 18 attacks while hitting an impressive .500 while digging up six balls and posting a block.
 
Redshirt junior Elizabeth Sandoval nearly reached double-figures with eight kills on just 13 swings while hitting for a .462 percentage. Senior Brooke Turner finished just behind Sandoval after tallying seven kills and a team-high 10 digs. Turner also added four blocks to the effort and a team-high tying three service aces. Junior Skylar Singleton also tied for the team lead in service aces with three while handing out six assists. Senior setter Anna Garrett dished out 33 assists over the four sets while adding six digs and a block.
 
The Lions out-blocked the Sharks 9-6 and were led at the net by sophomore Madelyn Eden who had a match-high seven block assists.    
 
Nova Southeastern jumped out to an early lead in the match taking the first set in dominating fashion, winning 25-15 and holding the Lions to a .091 hitting percentage over the first set. Despite the slow start the Lions came out swinging in the second set posting a .343 hitting percentage as a squad and stunning the Sharks en route to a 25-20 victory to tie the match at one. The third set saw both teams playing at a high level with the Sharks edging the Lions 25-17.
 
With the match on the line, the Lions did not back down in the fourth set. Saint Leo took an early lead 4-2 before the Sharks battled back to tie the set at 5-5. The teams went back-and-forth over the next several points until the Sharks finally took the lead for good at 15-14. The Lions kept the set close the rest of the way but were unable to tie it back up. Holding a 23-21 lead late in the set the Sharks picked up a kill to force their first match point of the night at 24-21. Henderson followed up with a kill of her own to cut the lead to 24-22 before an attack error by the Lions ended the set and match at 25-22.
 
Elizabeth Price and Julia Bernardes led the Sharks with 15 and 14 kills, respectively. NSU out-hit the Lions .328 to .221 while earning nine service aces compared to the Lions' eight.
 
The Lions will return to action Tuesday, Nov. 2 as they welcome in the Tritons of Eckerd College for a midweek SSC contest at 7 p.m.
 
For the latest news, updates, and information on the Saint Leo volleyball program, be sure to visit SaintLeoLions.com.  Fans can also stay up-to-date on the latest Lions news by following Saint Leo Athletics on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.