ST. PETERSBURG -- If there's one thing this Buccaneer volleyball squad has is fight. But after a tough weekend against the league's top two teams, Barry simply ran out of gas.
Barry lost to host Eckerd, 26-28, 25-18, 25-10, 25-16 Saturday to complete the first half of league play, leaving the Bucs with a 10-9 overall, 3-5 Sunshine State Conference mark.
Eckerd, which rests in second place in the league, is 12-7 overall, 6-2 in the SSC.
The Buccaneers, which entered the weekend with a two-match winning streak, had won its last league contest prior to this weekend. Barry simply couldn't string another a league mark to stay above the highwater mark. Instead, the Bucs fell two games below .500 in the league, and now prepare for a weekend outside of league play in Davie, Fla., at the South Region Crossover against North Alabama and West Alabama.
Barry won the war of attrition in the first set, taking a 14-9 lead on Kate Dooley's kill. The Bucs , which were outhit, .353 to .250, watched as the Tritons battled back to tie it at 20-20 on Kaleigh Humphrey's service ace. Laine Cielena's kill pushed Barry back up, 23-21, but Eckerd knotted the set again two points later on Ali McAlvany's ace. The two sides traded sideouts until the score remained deadlocked at 26-26 before Dooley slammed home a kill and Jayla Trombley blocked Tritons hitter Lindsay Biggs to put the Bucs ahead in the match 1-0.
Barry had a .438 attack percentage in the opening set, putting away 17 of its 46 kills.
But that's where the momentum stopped for the Red and Black as the Tritons hit .375, .360 and .500 over the final three sets, while the Buccaneers managed .231, .000 and .320 the rest of the way. Eckerd had 61 kills, and Barry finished with 33 digs. Eckerd had 38 digs against the Bucs' 46 kills.
Mima Hajdukovic had nine kills, hit .562 and distributed 35 assists. Cielena had six kills and three blocks. Trombley had five kills and two blocks. Ashley Carrero had 10 kills, and Tania Torres eight. Tashalyn Begon had five kills.
Barry was not credited with any aces, while Eckerd produced 11 in a 6-2 offense where Madison Burr had 30 assists and Emily Schadow 20.
The Buccaneers had three solo blocks, while the Tritons didn't manage any.