Box Score

FORT MYERS, Fla. – No. 3 seed Eastern Kentucky University fell to No. 6 seed North Florida, 3-1, on Thursday in the opening round of the 2023 Atlantic Sun Conference Volleyball Tournament in Fort Myers, Florida.
 
Sarah Mitchell had a team-best 16 kills, a .293 attack percentage and three blocks for the Colonels (21-8).  Katie McKune finished with 12 kills, a .290 hitting percentage and three blocks.  Josie Schmitendorf led all players with 29 digs.
 
EKU had set-point in two of the three sets that the Ospreys (17-14) won.
 
A kill from McKune gave EKU a 3-point lead, 20-17, late in the first set.  However, North Florida came back.  The Ospreys tied it, 21-21, on an attack error.  A kill from Madi Tolzman gave the Colonels set-point at 24-23, but UNF scored the next three points.  Kailey McKnight's kill ended the opener 26-24.
 
After a kill from AG Vandagriff got EKU within one, 11-10, in the second set, the Ospreys used a 5-1 run to take control.  McKnight's kill made it 16-11.  Blocks from Mahalia White and Maddie Boyd pushed the lead to seven, 21-14.  White's kill ended it, 25-18, and put the lower seed up 2-0.
 
The Colonels trailed by as many as five through the first half of the third set before staging a comeback.  Kills from Carson Ledford and Kambree Lucas tied it at 17-17.  Vandagriff gave EKU a 21-20 lead with a kill.  With the score tied 25-25, Schmitendorf served up an ace and McKune registered a kill to end it, 27-25, and keep the Colonels alive.
 
After EKU scored on an attack error early in the fourth set to cut a 3-point deficit to two, 10-8, neither team led by more than two the rest of the set.  McKune's kill gave the Colonels set-point at 24-23, but McKnight answered with a kill to tie it.  The Ospreys scored the final two points to claim the set, 26-24, and win the match.
 
McKnight and White had 20 kills each.  White made just two errors and hit .429 for the match. 
 
The Colonels finished with four more kills, 62-58, than North Florida, but had seven more attack errors.  EKU hit .205 while the Ospreys fashioned a .219 attack percentage.  UNF out-blocked the Colonels 15-9 and earned nine points on EKU service errors.