JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Jacksonville University volleyball took one of the top teams in the Atlantic Sun Conference to the brink, before falling in five sets to Lipscomb at Swisher Gymnasium on Saturday.
The Dolphins (8-18, 5-9) rallied from down 2-1 in the match and were felled in the closest margin possible in the ultimate fifth.
SET ONE
Lipscomb held an early three-point lead twice, before JU climbed back to tie it at eight. Whenever one team took a lead, the other quickly tied it consistently after that, until the Bisons scored four of five to go up 18-15. After a timeout down 20-17, JU used a block by
Rebecca Rocassin and
Alija Heins and a kill by
Jenna McNamara to cut the deficit to one, then after trading a couple of points, Heins had a kill and the Dolphins forced an error to tie the set at 23.
Lipscomb got to set point three times before a kill by McNamara gave the Dolphins the advantage. The Bisons tied it once more, by
Lauren Young delivered a kill to put JU up for good in the set, as they prevailed 29-27 to open the match.
SET TWO
The Bisons took an early lead in the second set, and while JU pushed back, Lipscomb maintained the lead until the Dolphins finally tied it at 13, using a kill by Rocassin and forcing a handful of errors.
Lyric Love scored immediately after that to cap a 5-1 run and JU had its first lead. The two teams traded points after that, with it being tied all the way up through 21-all. It was a 3-0 run by Lipscomb that gave them the 23-21 lead.
Young and McNamara had kills to push the Bisons to the brink, but the eventually prevailed 25-23 to even the match at one-apiece.
SET THREE
It was JU who got off to the early lead in the third, but Lipscomb came back to go up 11-7 and force a timeout by the Dolphins. The lead grew to as many as six after that, with another timeout called down 17-11. Down seven, JU got a kill by
Anna Erickson and forced two errors to get within 21-16.
Lipscomb scored three of the next four out of the timeout, and despite a late kill by Heins, the Bisons took a 2-1 match lead with a 25-19 set win.
SET FOUR
After a kill by Heins tied the set at eight, Lipscomb held the lead until Young and Love combined for a block to tie it back up at 12. Lipscomb held the Dolphins at bay, consistently holding a one- or two-point lead after that, with it eventually growing to three, 18-15. Erickson scored a kill and Heins followed with an ace to cut the deficit to one, 18-17. Soon after, a 4-0 run put JU on top, thanks to a trio of Bisons errors and a kill by McNamara, making it 22-20.
Lipscomb quickly tied it at 22, then again at 23 and took a 24-23 lead. McNamara's kill and a combo block by Rocassin and Heins put JU back in front, 25-24. The Bisons gained the advantage once more, 27-26, but Erickson tied it with another kill and then combined with Love for a set-clinching block to give JU the 29-27 win and force a fifth set.
SET FIVE
The final set was tight throughout, with JU scoring the first point, and leading 4-2 on back-to-back kills by Love and Erickson. Neither team led by more than two until the Bisons went ahead 12-9 and JU took a timeout. Heins and Erickson scored consecutive points out of the break and then Lipscomb took time in a one-point set. Two in a row for the Bisons gave them match point, 14-11, but back-to-back blocks, the first by Rocassin and Heins and the second by Love brought JU within one, before a service error out of a timeout ended it, 15-13, to give the Bisons the hard-fought victory.
UP NEXT
Jacksonville closes out the regular season with one last home stand, welcoming Stetson to Swisher Gym on Friday at 7 p.m. and FGCU on Saturday at 5 p.m. foe Senior Night.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
