MIAMI GARDENS, Fla.- The Ave Maria University volleyball team won their second match in a row Wednesday night, finishing off a series sweep of the Florida Memorial University Lions, 25-20, 25-14, 25-20 in Miami Gardens. In Ave Maria's first match in a week and a half, the Gyrenes moved to 3-5 in Sun Conference play, and kept the team's hopes for a Sun Conference Tournament berth very much alive.
The first set saw the Gyrenes come from behind, as Florida Memorial led by as many as five points, 12-7. That lead held for much of the first set, with the Lions holding a 20-16 lead before the Gyrenes scored three straight points to cut the FMU lead to 20-19. After the Lions got the lead back to 22-19, the Gyrenes took advantage of FMU miscues to win the set. Ave Maria scored six of the final seven points on three attack errors and a service error, as kills from Beatriz Rissi and Megan Klockner.
Ave Maria carried that momentum into the second set, which saw the Gyrenes in control from start to finish. AMU never trailed in the second frame, jumping out to a 9-3 lead. After the Lions closed the gap to 11-9, the Gyrenes went on another major run, winning nine of the next ten points to take a commanding lead of 20-10. From there, AMU cruised to the second set win, finishing off a 25-14 victory on a kill from Caroline Myers.
Wednesday's third set followed a similar script to the second, as Ave Maria grabbed the lead early and never relinquished it. The Gyrenes cruised to their second 25-20 victory of the match, ensuring a season sweep of the Lions.
Rissi was Ave Maria's leader on the attack, pounding home 13 kills with a .417 attack percentage while Ryan Getz added another nine kills. Myers ran the offense well, racking up 26 assists in AMU's second sweep of the season. Myers was also AMU's leader in the service game with three service aces. Ines Lopes and DeAnna Barrett were the defensive leaders for the Gyrenes, with both players recording 12 digs.
The Gyrenes face a major test on Saturday, facing one of the Sun Conference's top teams on the road. Ave Maria will head to Lakeland for a meeting with the Southeastern University Fire, who are currently second in the conference with a 6-1 record. In the first meeting between the two teams this season, the Fire defeated the Gyrenes at Tom Golisano Field House in four sets back in September. Opening serve from The Furnace in Lakeland is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.
