TEMPLE TERRACE, Fla.—Despite hitting numbers that heavily favored their antithesis, the Fire had plenty of chances to leave Florida College with a win.
Southeastern led at some point in each set tonight, but couldn't hang on, falling 15-9 in the final set to drop to 10-10 on the year.
The Fire had three chances to win the first set, but were unable to come up with the deciding point, dropping the set 29-27 after being out-hit .304 to .189. In the second set, the Fire lost the first five rallies, but stormed back to tie the set at five, punctuated by a block by Uche Kojo.
Florida College closed the set on an 8-1 run with half of those points coming on kills, posting an eye-popping .370 hitting percentage against a usually stout defense.
The Fire answered with a gritty 27-25 win in the third set, with two of the final three points being scored by
Kaitlin Boyd, who posted 17 kills and a team-best .516 hitting percentage.
Southeastern survived a late charge in the fourth set to force a fifth, where the Fire got two kills and two blocks from
Kelsey Morton, who led the team with 18 kills, nine digs, three blocks, and an ace, but it wasn't enough as the Falcons scored five straight points to close the night.
Hannah Kinlaw registered a team-best 29 assists, and
Alyssa Prescott chipped in 24 digs.
The Fire return to action tomorrow against St. Francis (Ill.) at home at 7 p.m.
