MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – Led by a 25 kills, 10 dig double-double from
Raya Mlyakova on Saturday, the ninth-ranked St. Thomas Women's Volleyball Team fended off host New College of Florida in a 3-2 (25-22, 25-12, 21-25, 18-25, 15-13) triumph.
INSIDE THE MATCHUPS:
Final: #9 St. Thomas 3, New College of Florida 3
Record: #9 St. Thomas (17-5, 11-0 Sun Conference), New College of Florida (15-6, 7-4 Sun Conference)
All-Time Series: STU leads 8-0
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Trailing midway through the opening set 14-12, the Bobcats took the lead off a 6-0 run and kept it down the stretch of a 25-22 victory.
- After splitting the initial 10 points of the second stanza, the Bobcats scored five-straight to take a 10-5 lead and kept it for the duration of the set.
- Despite holding a late 21-20 lead in the third set, New College forced a fourth frame behind a 5-0 set-ending rally.
- The host scored the opening two points of the fourth set and trailed in the frame to take the match to a fifth set.
- The Bobcats overcame a 3-0 start by NCF and held the host without another run of consecutive points until back-to-back tallies knotted the score at 12-all. The two sides traded the ensuing two points before the Bobcats closed out the match with a pair of points.
NOTEWORTHY:
- Mlyakova hit .465 while adding three assisted blocks and one service ace.
- Payton Bertke dished out 36 assists alongside 11 digs, four kills and two service aces.
- Isabela Aviloff tallied 24 digs.
- Isabel Narbutas boasted six assisted blocked.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:
- The Bobcats ended the match with 47 kills on a .152 hitting percentage; New College of Florida tallied 49 on a .107 clip.
- St. Thomas served eight aces while the Mighty Banyans served nine.
- St. Thomas recorded 14 assisted blocks versus seven solo and two assisted for the host.
- The Bobcats held a 68-58 advantage in digs.
UP NEXT:
The Bobcats travel to Florida Memorial on Wednesday, Oct. 28 with first serve slated for 6:00 pm.
