Box Score Pictured: Freshman Ashlee Hodgskin (Photo Credit: Alex Hernandez)
BOX SCORE (PDF) / CUMULATIVE STATISTICS (PDF)
MIAMI, Fla. (Sept. 21, 2012) – A pair of Panthers recorded double-doubles and three players reached the double-digit kill plateau, as FIU opened its home slate with a 3-2 (25-17, 24-26, 26-24, 20-25, 15-7) loss to Sun Belt Conference foe UALR on Friday night at U.S. Century Bank Arena. With the loss, the Panthers fall to 3-10 (0-1 SBC) while the Trojans improve to 5-8 (1-0 SBC).
Set one saw UALR run out to a 17-9 lead, forcing an FIU timeout. Out of the break, the teams traded points until the Trojans went ahead, 23-15. A UALR attack error put the score at 23-16, but the Trojans got the point back on a kill to get to set-point at 24-16. A kill by junior Brittany Spencer kept the Panthers alive, but a final kill by the Trojans gave UALR a 1-0 lead for the match, courtesy of a 25-17 set victory.
In set two, the squads battled to a 20-20 tie before senior Marija Prsa and junior Kimberly Smith combined for a block and freshman Gloria Levorin slammed down a kill to give FIU a 22-20 advantage. Following a UALR timeout, two-straight Trojan points ensued, knotting the score at 22-22. The teams would then trade points to make it 23-23, and a Trojan block put UALR in set-point position at 24-23. Prsa came through with a score to bring up another tie at 24-24, and a UALR attack error brought up set-point for FIU at 25-24. Levorin would then team up with Spencer for a block to give FIU a 26-24 set win, knotting the match at 1-1.
Set three saw FIU take a 21-19 lead on a tip by freshman Ashlee Hodgskin, and a kill by Prsa made it 22-19. UALR would then notch three-straight points to tie the score at 22-22 before Prsa slammed home a pass from Hodgskin to put FIU back on top at 23-22. The teams traded points to put the Panthers in set-point position at 24-23, but UALR registered three-straight scores to take away a 26-24 set win and a 2-1 lead for the match.
In the fourth stanza, FIU held a two-point lead at 17-15 before the Panthers scored two-consecutive points to extend their lead to 19-15, forcing a UALR timeout. Out of the break, the Trojans got to within two at 19-17, and a kill by Prsa pushed the deficit back to three at 20-17. A Panther attack error ensued to put the score at 20-18 before FIU scored three of the next four points, giving the Panthers a 23-19 advantage. UALR managed one more point for the set, as FIU knotted the match score at 2-2 by way of a 25-20 set victory.
The final set would then see UALR jump out to an 11-3 advantage before the Trojans took set five, 15-7, going on for a 3-2 match win. The Panthers are now 0-2 this season in five-set contests.
Prsa led FIU with a career-high-tying 25 kills, adding a team-high-tying 16 digs to mark her fifth double-double of the season and 15th of her career. Also posting 16 digs was Hodgskin, as she also registered a squad-high 50 assists, marking her first-career double-double. Rounding out the Panthers' double-digit kill performers was freshman Lucia Castro with 12 kills.
Spencer led the FIU blocking corps against the Trojans with a career-high five blocks, including a career-best two solo blocks. As a team, the Panthers registered a season-best six solo stops, and FIU out-bloked UALR, 12.0-6.0, for the match.
FIU will return to action on Sunday, Sept. 23, when the Panthers host SBC foe Arkansas State. First serve is set for 1 p.m. at U.S. Century Bank Arena. Live stats and a free live video feed can be accessed via the volleyball schedule page at www.FIUSports.com, and fans can also follow @FIUVolleyball on Twitter for live updates. For FIU volleyball ticket information, call 305-FIUGAME.
About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports, and is a proud member of the Sun Belt Conference and an affiliate member of Conference USA (men's soccer). Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including U.S. Century Bank Arena and Alfonso Field at FIU Stadium.
About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. Its colleges and schools offer more than 180 bachelor's, master's and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU is worlds ahead in its local and global engagement, finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission and enrolls nearly 48,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. More than 140,000 alumni live and work in South Florida. FIU is a member of the Sun Belt Conference and has 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.
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