Seattle University picked up an important victory to start its weekend in Miami, defeating Central Florida, before playing the University of Miami tough in a three-set loss Thursday.
Seattle U 3, Central Florida 1
Seattle U started the weekend with a 3-1 victory over Central Florida (25-21, 14-25, 25-22, 25-20) in the first match of the FIU Invitational at the FIU Arena. Matea Mamic (Split, Croatia) led the Redhawks with 14 kills, plus she earned seven digs, while Martina Samadan (Split, Croatia) finished with 11 kills, a .429 hitting percentage, seven digs, and four total blocks. Kerry Lane (Tucson, Ariz.) collected 42 assists, Iris Ivanis (Pozega, Croatia) contributed seven kills, nine digs, and five total blocks, and Claire Johnston (Winnipeg, Manitoba) led the backline with 10 digs.
“This is a great win for our program. We battled to win the first set, and then made too many errors in the second set. The team responded and worked through those issues to win the final two sets. To hit .300 against that quality a team is exceptional, and that should give us some confidence for tomorrow’s match,” Seattle U head coach James Finley said.
After the intermission, Seattle U scored four of the first five points of the third set, led by two kills from Samadan and a solo block by Ivanis. After a block by Jale Hervey tied the set at 5-5, the Redhawks scored five unanswered points, with Samadan earning a kill and a service ace. The Knights came within one point late in the set, but Seattle U held off the UCF rally, clinching the third set on a kill by Lane.
A service ace by Miranda Watkins allowed Central Florida to take the early lead in the fourth set, but the Redhawks were able to pull ahead, thanks in part to two kills apiece by Mamic and Jelena Vujcin (Becej, Serbia). After a block by Lane and Maja Stojanovic (Cacak, Serbia) extended the Redhawk lead to 13-10, the Knights went on a 6-1 scoring run, led by two kills and a block assist from Maddie Haggerty, to retake the lead at 16-14.
Down 18-17 after a kill by Central Florida’s Abbie Fleener, Seattle U closed out the set and the match with an 8-2 scoring run, taking advantage of five Knight errors down the stretch. Samadan and Ivanis would combine on a block, and Mamic finished off the contest with her 14th kill of the match.
Led by two kills from Samadan and two service aces from Vujcin, Seattle U took an early 6-1 lead in the opening set, but Central Florida chipped away at its deficit, eventually tying the set at 11-11 on kills by Kia Bright and Hervey. After a kill by Bright put the Knights ahead 17-16, the Redhawks closed out the set with a 9-4 scoring run, including two blocks and one kill by Vujcin and punctuated by a kill from Samadan.
Central Florida (5-5) took control of the second set thanks to an 11-2 scoring run, led by Bright with two kills and two service aces. A block by Samadan and Ivanis closed the Redhawk deficit to six at 16-10, but that would be as close as Seattle U would get in the set, as the Knights finished the set with a 9-4 scoring run, including two kills apiece from Hervey and Taylor Wickey.
Stojanovic posted her best offensive performance of the season, earning nine kills on 12 attempts with just one attack error for a .667 hitting percentage, while Vujcin contributed five kills and three service aces. As a team, the Redhawks hit .300 in the contest and finished with nine team blocks, overcoming 14 service errors and a small digs deficit (42-38).
Miami 3, Seattle U 0
In its second match of the day, Seattle U played well in spurts, but the University of Miami’s offense was too much, as the Hurricanes defeated the Redhawks 3-0 (25-14, 25-20, 25-21) Thursday night at the Knight Complex.
Samadan led the Redhawks offensively with 12 kills and a .348 hitting percentage, while Mamic contributed 11 kills and five digs. Lane collected 32 assists in the match to go along with two kills, four digs, and three total blocks, and Mary Orbeta (Alameda, Calif.) led the Seattle U defense with 10 digs.
Miami (6-3) jumped out to a 9-2 lead in the opening set as the Hurricanes earned three blocks and two service aces during that stretch. Seattle U settled down and played Miami point-for-point, closing to within six at 15-9 on a block by Samadan and Lane. The Hurricanes pulled away thanks to a 7-1 scoring run, led by three kills from Kelsie Groot, and then clinched the first set with back-to-back kills by Olga Strantzali.
There were seven ties and three lead changes in the second set as the Redhawks stuck with the Hurricanes until three kills by Lucia Pampana over the span of four points gave Miami the lead for good. A service ace by Mamic later in the set closed the Redhawk deficit to one at 18-17, but a 7-3 Hurricane scoring stretch ended the second set, punctuated by a block by Groot and Pampana.
The Hurricanes scored the first three points of the third set and then went on a 7-3 scoring run to extend their advantage to 17-10. Down by nine points, the Redhawks fought back, closing to within three at 24-21 after a kill by Vujcin and a Miami attack error, but the home team finished off the set and the match with a kill by Taylor Scott.
“We got off to a slow start against a very good team, and it took a little while for us to adjust to their offense. I was really pleased with the team’s performance as the match went along, as we created more chances and had an outstanding third set,” said Finley. “Still, we made too many errors, but as our defense comes along, we will be able to run a better offense and be more successful.”
Seattle University (6-5) heads back to Florida International University for the final day of the FIU/Miami Challenge Friday, Sept. 18, first taking on Bethune-Cookman at 1 p.m. Eastern time before facing the host Panthers at 7 p.m. local time. Live stats for both matches and live video for the FIU contest will be available through links on the volleyball schedule page at GoSeattleU.com.