AVE MARIA, Fla. — The Ave Maria Volleyball team got off to a hot start Saturday against New College of Florida winning the first set, but cooled off as the Mighty Banyans took the next three sets to win 20-25, 25-20, 25-21, 25-12. It was the last home match for the Gyrenes in their first season back in the Tom Golisano Field House and prior to the match, Ave Maria honored the two seniors on the team.
The first set started off great for the Gyrenes. Ave Maria recorded 14 kills to New College's 12, while each committing seven errors to give the Gyrenes a better hitting percentage. Ave Maria also added two aces for good measure.
The best run for the Gyrenes is when they went on a 7-0 spree against the Mighty Banyans. Abbey Grose recorded both aces of the set in that time while Beatriz Rissi and Greta Hiney each got a kill. New College tried to claw back, but the long run from the Gyrenes put Ave Maria up nine which allowed them to cruise to a set win.
The second set was the closest of the afternoon with five ties between the two teams. Ave Maria forced the fourth tie of the set and led by one to four points for the majority of the set. However, New College did complete their comeback in this set, tying the game at 17 and scoring two more points to take the lead. The Mighty Bayans then held off Ave Maria just long enough to take the set.
The third set was the closest in score, but only had two ties, both early in the set. New College took a 3-2 lead and never let the Gyrenes in front again. No run was longer than three points for either team in the third set, and the Mighty Banyans took it 25-21.
In the fourth set, New College went on the biggest run of the afternoon, scoring 13 of the first 15 points of the match. The Gyrenes burned both of their timeouts but could not find an answer to the Mighty Banyans.
Out of the second timeout, the Gyrenes started scoring points, but were still outmatched by New College who won 25-12.
With the loss, Ave Maria falls to 4-17 overall and 4-8 in conference play. They also end their first season back at the Tom Golisano Field House with a 3-5 record.
Emily Child led the team in kills with 11. Heiney was the other Gyrene in double figures with 10. Ryan Getz was the leading setter with 29 assists, a season-high for her. Defensively, Ines Lopes led the team with 15 digs. Grose was the other Gyrene with double digit digs at 12.
Despite the loss, Ave Maria stays in sixth place in the Sun Conference standings thanks to a Warner loss on Friday.
Both the Gyrenes and the Royals have two more conference games left to play. If the Gyrenes match Warner's record in those final two games, Ave Maria is in the postseason for the sixth year in a row. If Warner wins one or two more games than the Gyrenes though, then the Royals are in the playoffs instead of the Gyrenes.
The postseason determining games start Wednesday, November 6, for the Gyrenes as they travel across Alligator Alley to take on the #10 St. Thomas Bobcats. Warner plays Southeastern at the same time. Opening serve is set for 7 p.m. and the game will be streamed live on the Sun Digital Network.
