Beach Volleyball Mar 09, 2021

Lions Ledger: Women's Basketball and Beach Volleyball in Action Wednesday

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RECORDS: Saint Leo 2-0 | Webber 5-0 | Palm Beach Atlantic 2-0
Saint Leo beach volleyball will face its first road test of the season Wednesday as the Lions travel to Webber for a tri-match with the Warriors and Palm Beach Atlantic.
The Lions opened up the 2021 season with a sweep of Warner and Eckerd in a tri-match Feb. 27. The Lions defeated Warner 5-0 before edging out the Tritons 3-2.
The Lions' number one pair of Brooke Turner and Nina Vattovaz went 2-0 in the tri-match as did pairs No. 2 and No. 3 which consisted of Arlaina Stephenson and Sydney Omtvedt and Ally-Reese Williams and Lina Russo, respectively.
The Lions went 0-2 last season against PBA including a 3-2 loss on the road and a 4-1 loss at home on March 12 which proved to be the final match of the 202 COVID-19 shortened season. Webber defeated the Lions 3-2 in West Palm Beach last season in their lone meeting.
Webber is 5-0 this season with three matches decided by a 3-2 score. The Warriors have defeated Ave Maria, Southeastern, St. Andrews, St. Thomas and Florida Memorial. Webber's No. 4 (Hannah Tannone/Penny Gwynn) and No. 5 (Shymara Dykes/Brianda Valdez) pairs are undefeated this season as well.
Palm Beach Atlantic is 2-0 this season with a pair of 5-0 victories over Florida Southern. The Sailfish are led by their No. 1 pair Lunden Evans and Jazz Schmidt. As a team they have only dropped one game and it came in the second match against FSC and in the No. 2 slot where Abby Devido and Olivia Finckel held on for a 29-27, 22-24, 20-18 victory.

RECORDS: Saint Leo 2-1 | Tampa 2-0
Saint Leo returns to the Marion Bowman Activities Center after two games on the road. The Lions enjoyed a dominate victory at Florida Tech (74-59) on Saturday. They will look to continue momentum as they prepare to host the Spartans of Tampa.
Tori Lesko has been a presence for the Green and Gold off the boards and shooting. The graduate student is just shy of averaging a season double-double with nine rebounds per game (RPG) and 13.7 points per game (PPG).
Alex Button has been on fire beyond the arc. The junior shooting guard enters the game averaging a team-high 14.3 PPG with a 53.5-field goal percentage and an even more dangerous 60.0-three-point percentage.
As a team, Saint Leo averages 77.33 PPG, averages a 37.2-percent from the floor, a 76.2-perecent from the free throw line, and 29 RPG.
Tampa had its first full week of action this past week. The Spartans defeated Palm Beach Atlantic (66-57) and Barry (66-46), both games held at Tampa. The success handed both Sunshine State Conference (SSC) Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week honors to the Spartans in Melijah Sullivan and LaShayla Wright-Ponder, respectively.
Sullivan leads Tampa's offense with 18.0 PPG shooting 59.3-percent from the floor. She is supported by Wright-Ponder with 13.5 PPG, and Erin Antosh with 12.0 PPG. Off the window, Sullivan also leads the team with 11.0 RPG for a season average double-double.
On the season, Tampa averages 66 PPG, averages a 46.5-percent from the floor, 46.3-percent from the charity stripe and 43.5 RPG.
History: Tampa holds an 11-0 series run over Saint Leo. The last time the Lions were able to upset the backyard foes was on February 18, 2015 in Saint Leo, Fla. Last year in the Bowman Center, Tampa escaped the Lions in an overtime decision, 72-66. Tampa later captured a 73-58 win to sweep the series. The teams last met in the SSC Semifinals where the Spartans advanced following a 72-57 final.