WINTER PARK, Fla. – Barry University’s volleyball team dropped its Sunshine State Conference opener at No. 35 Rollins, 25-21, 25-17, 25-19, Friday night.
Barry (4-4, 0-1 SSC) had leads in the first and second sets, but couldn’t hold on, and Rollins (11-2, 1-0) seized control in the decisive third set, and never relinquished the lead.
Barry found itself in a 13-8 hole in the third set before kills by Laine Cielena and Ivana Didanovic and an attack error by Rollins' Kelly Merideth brought the Buccaneers within 14-11. Tashalyn Begon and Didanovic added a couple kills, Cielena fired off an ace, and a block by Didanovic and Ashley Carrero helped Barry draw within a pair, 17-15. But the Tars ran off six of the next eight points, prompting Barry coach Steve Hendricks to call a timeout with his team two points away from termination, 23-17.
A pair of Rollins attacking errors kept the Buccaneers lifeline alive for a couple more serves before the Tars closed out the sweep.
Cielena finished with 10 kills on 26 attempts with two errors for a .308 hitting percentage. Didanovic hit .333 on eight kills in 18 attempts, committing two errors. She had her hand in on four of the Bucs’ five blocks.
Rollins became the third team Barry has outblocked this season after the Tars totaled four.
Carrero’s kill in the second set pulled the Bucs within a point, 9-8, before the Tars used a pair of sideout-sandwiched 7-1 runs to take a 17-10 lead on kills by Katlyn Sawyer and Kate Stefanski. Cielena and Didanovic each put away balls to halt the bleeding, but Rollins quickly inched closer to taking a 2-0 match lead following a kill by Camille Indest and a Bucs’ setting error. Barry’s Katie Dooley and Didanovic combined on a block to trigger a 4-0 Buccaneer run, cutting Rollins’ lead to 21-16 after Carrero’s kill. But even a late kill by Jasmine Serna on a setup from Jayla Trombley wasn’t enough to help the Buccaneers pull even in the match as Rollins ran away with the set victory.
Barry led 18-14 in the opening set, following Trombley’s ace and a Tars hitting error. But Rollins went on an 8-1 run, capped off by Sawyer’s kill to take a 22-19 lead the Tars would not let slip away. The Buccaneers hit .088 in the first set. Rollins had a .167 attack percentage in the set.
Serna had 22 assists, and Kristen Reid scooped up 11 of the Bucs 44 digs. Rollins hit .255, while the Buccaneers had a .136 attack rate. Indest had 10 kills while hitting .600, Merideth added nine kills, and Sawyer eight.
The Buccaneers will play at No. 3 Tampa, a three-set winner over Florida Tech Friday, Saturday at 4 p.m. Barry returns home next Friday and Saturday to continue SSC play against Nova Southeastern and Lynn.