Garden City, N.Y. - Despite taking on set from the no. 7 team in all of NCAA Division II, the Adelphi University volleyball team dropped a 3-1 decision to the University of Tampa Friday evening, inside the Center for Recreation and Sports.
Delaney Kiendra was the lone Panther to reach double-figures in the loss, accounting for 13 kills as fellow rookie
Anna Oden collected nine of her own.
Kambel Fiser recorded her first double-double of the season, with 29 assists and 14 digs.
The Spartans (5-1) jumped out to an early advantage in the opening set, but the home team used a
Noelle Alberda kill to even the score at seven-all. From there however, Tampa strung together several serving rallies, resulting in an eight-point advantage at 20-12. A 7-2 run in favor of the Panthers allowed Adelphi to come within three, but the visitors got the final to say to take the first set victory.
As the second set got underway, it looked much like the first, with Tampa commanding an early lead. A six-point run had them in a comfortable spot, en route to leading by 12 on set point before Melissa Elias put down the final kill to give the visiting team a 2-0 upper hand in the match.
Brenna Valsted, who finished with eight assists, did her part at the serving line in the third set, as back-to-back aces from the Louisville, Kentucky native led the Panthers to a 7-3 lead. Tampa was quick to add four points to their side of the scoreboard to even it all at seven, but Adelphi kept fighting, working back out to a five-point advantage with the help of an
Lilyen McCarthy/Alberda block. Despite three consecutive service aces from the Spartans' Sarah Luoma to lock the game at 22-22, Alberda and Kiendra each notched timely kills to steal a set from Tampa.
After trading the lead in the fourth and eventual final set, the visitors rattled off seven straight points to sit up by six, and despite an Oden kill and
Jamaya Harris service ace, the Panthers struggled to string together any more points. Tampa added another five consecutive points to lead by nine, a lead they never relinquished. Four of the last five points went to the visiting team, giving them their second win of the day after defeating Molloy earlier in the afternoon.
Adelphi wraps up the weekend of action with a 2:30 p.m. contest on Saturday, Sept. 11, when they take on Nyack College. The Warriors are featured in a double-dip inside the CRS, as they will match up with Tampa at noon. Both games will be streamed on NE10 Now.
