Tampa Holds Off Embry-Riddle to Win on Senior Day

TAMPA, Fla. - Tampa celebrates seniors with a hard fought win over Embry-Riddle.

Final Score: No. 1 Tampa 3 (1: 25-20, 2: 25-21, 3: 23-25, 4: 25-18), Embry-Riddle 1

Records: No. 1 Tampa (28-0, 20-0 SSC), Embry-Riddle (16-14, 9-11 SSC)

Location: Bob Martinez Athletic Center | Tampa, Fla.

HOW IT HAPPENED: 

First Set: Tampa started the game on the back foot before senior Nathaly Perez scored three of Tampa's first four points to tie the set 4-4. The first set was tightly contested throughout with neither team holding a lead above two points for much of it. The Eagles' attack was very efficient, but Kayla Dondero and Jenna Glaudel operated an even more efficient Spartan attack as the Spartans hit .368 in the set. With the score 20-20, Tampa displayed their offensive efficiency as Dondero closed the set with four assists to three different teammates.  | Score: 25-20 Tampa

Second Set: Tampa carried the momentum from the end of the first set with a kill by Rachel Gregg pushing Tampa's early lead to 6-1. Embry-Riddle would battle back until senior Tess Schrenger would smack a kill to help Tampa rebuild their lead. Tampa would use a balanced attack and solid defense to keep Embry-Riddle at bay and would go on to win a tight set that they never trailed in. | Score 25-21 Tampa

Third Set: The third set started off very tight as Tampa would trail before getting their first point off of a block from Jenna Davis to make the score 1-2. Trailing 9-6, Tampa would score four straight points to take the lead with 3 kills from Schrenger among them. Connor Rahn would soon record a kill to extend Tampa's lead to 16-13. The Eagles would then make their move and start their own a streak of kills to once again tie the set 20-20. The Eagles would take advantage of a pair of late hitting errors from the Spartans to win the third set by a razor thin margin. | Score 23-25 Embry-Riddle

Fourth Set: Tampa would start the set strong as Rahn would record four early kills to help the Spartans lead 6-4. Tampa would maintain a steady lead throughout the set and would lead 17-13 after a kill from Glaudel. The Eagles would battle back to get the Tampa lead down to 19-17 before the Spartans would win six of the final 7 points to close out the set. Rahn put up an impressive nine kills in the fourth set to propel the Spartans to a win to close the season. | Score: 25-18 Tampa

INSIDE THE STATS:

• 5 Spartans recorded at least 15 digs with Ana Rivera leading the way with 22.
• Kayla Dondero and Jenna Glaudel both recorded double doubles with Dondero recording 35 assists and 15 digs while Glaudel had 15 assists and 17 digs.
• Connor Rahn and Tess Schrenger recorded double doubles as well, but with kills and digs. Rahn had 23 kills and 16 digs while Schrenger had 19 kills and 15 digs
• The Spartan seniors all performed well, with each recording at least 5 kills.
• Seniors Jenna Davis and Rachel Gregg both recorded a pair of solo blocks