GAINESVILLE – Jacksonville University volleyball wrapped up its 2016 non-conference slate Saturday with a neutral site match against Florida A&M. The Dolphins competed well in the first set, but ran out of gas in the final two, losing to the Rattlers in three.

JU and FAMU had a ferocious battle in the first set, with five ties and two lead changes in the first 10 points alone. The Rattlers bit the Dolphins with a 14-5 run to go up 19-10, but Jacksonville struck back with a 7-3 run to put the score at 22-17. Unfortunately, Florida A&M matched the Dolphins' final three points in the set with three of its own, keeping that five-point margin to the end. The first set went to FAMU 25-20.

As in previous matches this season, consistent play was a theme in the second set. Jacksonville would win a point, but follow that up with an unforced error. All told, JU had 11 errors in the set, and that proved to be too much to overcome. The Dolphins trailed by eight late in the set, and though they scored six points on impressive kills by Jessica Armstrong, Olga Nushtayeva, Amarrah Cooks, and Mallory Mattingly, FAMU again answered each point with one of its own. The second set went the Rattlers' way, 25-17.

Jacksonville stumbled a bit out of the break, allowing the Rattlers to go on a 5-0 run. The Dolphins tried to overcome that gap with kills by Cristina Finan and Armstrong, but again errors played a key role in unraveling any JU momentum. With the score at 13-8 in favor of Florida A&M, Jacksonville had five errors in a 6-0 run by the Rattlers. Finan scored another kill to snap the streak, but FAMU was able to close the set with a 6-4 run to claim the match.

Finan, Armstrong, and Cooks each had six kills to lead the offense, with Mattingly close behind at five kills. Armstrong was a wall at the net, collecting four blocks, and Nushtayeva, Gesualdo, and Cooks contributed to the block party with two total blocks apiece. Gesualdo also collected 21 assists, moving her up to 17th all-time in the Atlantic Sun career assists list. Swan had 20 digs in her 12th consecutive game of double-digit digs.

The Dolphins return home to the Historic Swisher Gym on Friday, September 23. They'll open ASUN play with the home half of the River City Rumble at 7 p.m. Last season Jacksonville and the University of North Florida split the regular season matches, but JU got ultimate bragging rights when they won the postseason matchup and "The Old Wooden Barrel", the trophy awarded to the school with the most victories in head-to-head matchups over the other in the current season.