MELBOURNE, Fla. – The Saint Leo University volleyball team nearly pulled off a come-from-behind victory against a struggling Florida Tech team, but the Lions ultimately could not overcome a poor start that led to a Panther upset over the Green & Gold in five sets Tuesday night at the Clemente Center.
 
For the first time this season, Saint Leo (5-6, 1-2 SSC) fell despite tallying more kills than its opponent, 66-57.  Tuesday also marked the first time this season in which the Lions boasted the better hitting percentage at .244 compared to .223.  With the win, Florida Tech (6-5, 1-2 SSC) hos now bested the Green & Gold twice in the last three contests.
 
Sophomore Colby Stempkowski stepped up for Saint Leo, leading the team with 14 kills while Senior Skylar Singleton posted a season-high 42 assists.
 
The opening set saw the Panthers take advantage of a lethargic Lions' team, pushing its lead to 10-3 before the Green & Gold attempted to cut the deficit.  Saint Leo was unable to recover in Set One, as 11 of the 25 points for the Panthers resulted from errors.
 
When Set Two began for Saint Leo, it appeared the team was in position to stay afloat the Crimson & Grey, maintaining a slim lead (12-8) before suffering another meltdown that allowed the Panthers to go on a 10-1 run that proved to be the fueling fire to a 25-18 set win for Florida Tech.
 
Florida Tech took control of the third set to start, leading 10-5 over Saint Leo and appearing to be well in position for a potential sweep.  With their backs to the wall down 12-8, Saint Leo woke up from its slumber to fight back in the third set, reeling off nine, straight points to go up 17-12.  The Panthers would only slim the deficit to two, (20-18) before the Lions took the final five points to take its first set of the night 25-18.
 
Momentum began to shift towards the Lions in Set Four, as the Panthers could not break out a lead as they did in the first two sets.  After Florida Tech cut the Lions' lead to one (20-19), the Green & Gold once again scored five, set-finishing points for a second, consecutive time and take the match into a fifth set.
 
The final set began in favor of Florida Tech, jumping out to an 8-3 lead before Saint Leo responded with four answered points to trail by one.  Unfortunately, the Panthers had more energy in the tank to finish the night on a 7-2 run to win the deciding set 15-9 and clinch its first, conference win over the Green & Gold.
 
Lions by the Numbers
3:        Overall series matches with FT that went to five sets
4:        Aces
5:        Sets played
8:        Team blocks
61:      Team digs
                                                                                            63:      Team assists
 
The Lions will look to rebound at home Saturday as the team hosts Florida Southern; first serve is slated for 4 p.m.
 
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