NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Lipscomb volleyball made a victorious return to Allen Arena Saturday night as the squad earned a decisive 3-0 (25-15, 25-21, 25-15) sweep over the North Florida Ospreys. With Saturday night's win, the Bisons improve to 9-5 on the season and 4-0 in conference play.
The Bisons totaled 41 kills on the night at a clip of .348 while holding the Ospreys at a .111 hitting percentage. Lipscomb's squad picked up 40 digs in the match and put down three blocks.
Courtney Jones led the Purple and Gold's offense with 14 kills, followed closely by
Meg Mersman with 12.
Delaney Smith picked up 15 digs to lead the Bisons while Sophia Hudephol tallied nine digs of her own.
Set 1:
The Bisons broke out of the gate with big swings from the get-go by
Courtney Jones and
Meg Mersman to open the first set with a 7-1 Lipscomb lead. North Florida's squad attempted to capitalize on Lipscomb errors, but the Purple and Gold collected two-to-four-point runs compared to the one-to-two-point runs from the Ospreys and soon found themselves with a 23-13 lead after a big swipe block from Mersman. The Bisons combined for a .500 hitting percentage in the first set with Mersman putting away six of the squad's 14 kills in the set.
Set 2:
Things got more interesting in the second set as the two programs held tied from the first serve of the set through 10-10 when North Florida began pulling away. Mersman put away three of the Bisons first six points in the set with big swings from the middle hitter. The Ospreys put together a six-point run to go up 16-11 in the middle of the set before the Bisons began chipping away with kills from
Jada DiVita and
Berkley Mischler. The Bisons' defense stood strong under the Ospreys' onslaught, picking up 21 digs in the second frame to hold off North Florida's offense. Mischler, Jones, and Mersman combined for a six-point run for the Bisons to come back from a 21-19 lead for North Florida to win set two.
Set 3:
The final frame opened with a set of back-and-forth plays that brought the set to a 6-6 tie before the Bisons offense hit their stride and began pulling away. Lipscomb's squad put together five runs with at least three points in a row, highlighted by a five-point run to take the squad from a 9-8 lead up to 14-8 with kills from Jones and
Cora ter Kuile. The Purple and Gold picked up 12 digs and 14 assists in the third frame with a match-high 15 kills from the squad. It was a big set for the pin hitters as Jones put down seven kills, ter Kuile clocked three kills, and DiVita delivered two kills to account for 12 of the squad's 15 kills in the third set.
COACH ROSENTHAL POSTGAME
UP NEXT
The Bisons will return to Allen Arena on Friday, Oct. 6
th to take on the Eastern Kentucky Colonels at 6:00 PM CT.
