SAINT LEO, Fla. – It was poetic justice for the Saint Leo University volleyball team; after a heartbreaking setback earlier in the season, the Lions quickly took care of business Saturday afternoon, sweeping the Palm Beach Atlantic Sailfish 3-0 at the Marion Bowman Activities Center.
Redshirt Senior
Elizabeth Sandoval led the charge for the Lions (11-14, 4-10 SSC), registering 14 kills while posting two service aces. Senior
Skylar Singleton and Freshman
Tajma Muharemovic split the sei load, recording 17 and 16 assists, respectively.
Saint Leo found themselves trailing early to Palm Beach Atlantic (12-13, 6-9 SSC) thanks to five, critical attacking errors that gave PBA an 11-6 lead. The Lions responded with five straight points to tie the opening set, beginning a comeback run for the ages for the Green & Gold. The Sailfish scored six of the next eight points to hold a four-point lead (17-13) before the Lions' 5-1 run tied the set 18-18. With both sides exchanging a few points, PBA took advantage of back-to-back service aces from Jayden Otto that fueled a 4-1 run and appeared to put the Sailfish in position for the opening set win before the Lions' attack flipped the momentum with a 6-1 run to steal the set 27-25.
Momentum continued to favor Saint Leo in Set Two, as the Lions used a 6-1 run to fuel an early 9-4 lead. When the Sailfish began to close the gap and cut the deficit to three (11-8), the Green & Gold responded with a blazing 10-2 run to establish a sizeable scoring difference from PBA, ultimately leading to a 25-14 Set Two win.
Both sides matched each other point for point in the third set, up until Palm Beach Atlantic held a slim 18-17 lead. Saint Leo put together a six-point run, orchestrated by the play of Sandoval including her two service aces that gave the Green & Gold a 23-18 lead. After both sides exchanged a point, the Sailfish attempted to keep the match alive with three straight points (24-22) before Senior
Ally-Reese Williams clinched the sweep with a kill to give the Lions a 25-22 victory and match win.
Lions by the Numbers
0: Sets given up
2: 6+ point runs
3: Players with multiple service ace games
4: SSC wins
7: Team service aces
8: Overall wins against PBA
11: Season wins
33: Assists
35: Kills
40: Digs
Saint Leo travels to Boca Raton, Fla. Tuesday to face RV Lynn University in a match that was rescheduled due to Hurricane Ian. First set is scheduled for 7 p.m.
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