TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (Seminoles.com) — After coming back down two sets earlier in the day against UCF, the Florida State volleyball team (5-3, 3-3) dominated against Troy (11-8, 10-6) in straight sets (25-18, 25-13, 25-17) on Friday afternoon at Tully Gymnasium.
The Seminoles capped a strong day by out-lasting the Knights (8-1) in five sets in what was a thrilling match. Senior outside hitter Jasmyn Martin had a big match with 13 kills, five blocks and hitting .417 against UCF. Sophomore middle blocker Emma Clothier was also key with 13 kills, four blocks, eight digs and a .600 clip.
FSU clawed back from two sets down and dominated the decisive fifth set, hitting .316 in the final frame. An important 4-0 run in the set put FSU ahead 8-3 following an attack error by UCF, which was preceded by a big block from Taryn Knuth and Jessica Nunge. FSU would end the match on a 5-0 run, which included kills by Martin and Knuth, to seal the match.
In the second match, the Noles played against the Troy Trojans for the first time since Sept. 18, 2004. This was also the Seminoles’ sixth time facing Troy in program history, as they are now 6-0 against them all-time and have never lost a set to them in each of those six wins.
Redshirt sophomore Lily Tessier had a stellar performance in the match, putting together a team-high 25 assists, along with six digs, six total attacks, and four kills.
Redshirt sophomore Morgan Chacon had a strong presence with 16 total attacks, 10 digs, and nine kills. She was one kill away from recording her third double-double of the season.
Junior Marissa Stockman led the team in blocks with seven and paired it with eight total attacks. Martin also played well with five kills, while sophomore Lauryn Burrows recorded 14 digs in the match.
Although Troy had more attacks than FSU, 105-85, the Seminoles were able to overcome that difference by leading in kills, 32-26, as well as digs, 45-32. The Noles also committed fewer errors, 29-12, and had seven more blocks than the Trojans.
The scoring went back and forth between FSU and Troy in the first set until the Seminoles went on a 7-2 scoring run to take a 19-14 lead. Another run that included a service ace from Clothier and back-to-back kills from freshman Sydney Conley pushed the Noles to take the set at 25-18.
The Seminoles picked up where they left off from the end of the first set and jumped out to a 10-5 lead to start the second set. FSU didn’t allow the Trojans to get two straight points for the rest of the set and won, 25-13, behind 13 total kills and a service ace from Chacon.
In the third set, the Noles continued to stay in control, as they put together a run of seven points after trailing 9-8 earlier in the set. FSU finished the set with three total aces and Nunge delivered the game-winning kill to beat the Trojans in straight sets.
The Seminoles will return to action Saturday when they take on Louisiana in Tully Gym at 5 p.m.
