VALDOSTA —
On Tuesday night, Valdosta State’s volleyball team pushed the top team in the Gulf South Conference, No. 19 West Florida, to five sets, before finally falling 15-25, 25-20, 25-18, 23-25, 15-7.
The Argonauts improved to 15-1 in conference play and 22-7 overall, while the Blazers dropped to 17-13 and 8-8 in the Gulf South.
Valdosta State started the match on fire, hitting .405 in the first set, with just one error, en route to a 25-15 win. The Blazer defense held West Florida to just 10 kills, six errors and an .089 hitting percentage in the first set.
The Argonauts righted the ship in the second set, winning 25-20. West Florida hit .324, while VSU dropped its percentage to .143. The Blazers hit just .062 in the third set, as West Florida went on to gain a 2-1 advantage with a 25-18 win.
Trying to survive in the fourth set, Valdosta State caught fire late. The Blazers rallied from a 19-17 deficit and won the set 25-23.
Unfortunately for VSU, the fifth set did not go its way. The Blazers hit a match low minus-.130 in the final set, with seven errors. Valdosta State fell behind 5-0, and that deficit was too much to overcome.
Tania Tauiliili put together a strong match, tallying 15 kills and a team high .393 hitting percentage, with two service aces and two blocks. Katie Onushko led the squad in kills with 17 and doubled up with 17 digs.
Chelsea Luttfring led all players with 19 digs, while Ashley Lala also double-doubled with 15 digs and 46 assists. Destiny Berry was in on six blocks, as the Blazers outblocked West Florida 9-7.
For West Florida, it was Jenny Bellairs leading the way with 16 kills, while Autumn Duyn had 15. Sarah Scott added 10 kills. Setters K.C. Dobbins and Sierra Hanson combined for 60 assists. Dobbins added 17 digs to her 37 assists to lead UWF, while four others tallied double-digit digs.
Valdosta State will head to Pensacola, Fla. for the Gulf South Conference Tournament Nov. 16-18.
Local Sports
VSU volleyball falls to West Florida in 5 sets
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