TEMPLE TERRACE, Fla. — The Ave Maria Volleyball team dropped their first match of the season Tuesday evening, falling to the Florida College Falcons 3-0. The Gyrenes had a tough time putting together rallies against the Falcons as they fell 25-18, 25-13, 25-21.
Ave Maria won the first two points of the opening set and remained in front for a good bit. However, a 4-0 run for the Falcons swapped the lead over to them and the Gyrenes had trouble taking it back. Florida College won the final four points of the frame to take a 1-0 lead.
The second set was by far the most lopsided as Florida College won 13 of the first 17 points. The Falcons continued to cruise and grew their lead by as many as 12 points. That is also the margin by which they won by as they took a 2-0 lead.
The third set was the closest of the night as the Gyrenes passed the 20-point mark in the set. Florida College again jumped out to a big lead, leading by as much as seven points. Ave Maria was able to cut those leads down to three with some good-sized runs but had trouble getting in front. The Gyrenes fought off three match points with two attack errors from the Falcons and one kill by Kaitlyn Anderson to make the score 24-21. However, a service error ended the night for the Gyrenes.
Individually, Anderson led the team with 10 kills, hitting double digits for the second match in a row. The leading setter was Maria Teixiera with nine assists, followed by Caroline Myers with seven. Both Teixeira and Myers also recorded the only two aces behind the service line for the Gyrenes.
Defensively, Elle Malczewski led the team at the net with two total blocks. Maylis DeTar led the back row with 10 digs.
With the loss, Ave Maria falls to 3-1 on the young season.
The Gyrenes are finally home for the first time in 2026 as their next match is at the friendly confines of the Tom Golisano Field House. It will also be the first home match under new head coach John Schmidt. The Gyrenes will take on the Florida National Conquistadors. Ave Maria has won the last 15 straight matches against FNU and has not dropped a set against the Conquistadors since 2020. Opening serve is set for 7 p.m. and the game will be streamed live on the Sun Digital Network.
