WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – The Palm Beach Atlantic volleyball team celebrated senior night in its last game of the regular season on Saturday night.
 
PBA (18-13, 10-10 SSC) treated its home crowd to a thriller of a match as the Sailfish bested the Tritons in five sets. The 'Fish overcame a 2-1 deficit in the middle of the match, winning the last two sets to earn the win and the season split against Eckerd (19-12, 10-10 SSC). The Tritons totaled 18 blocks in the match, but the Sailfish were able to counter, holding Eckerd to a .146 hitting percentage in the match.
 
The Sailfish came out on top of a nerve-racking fifth set. After spotting Eckerd two points, the Sailfish went on a 6-1 run including a trio of kills from Caroline Swan and pair of kills from Jazz Schmidt. With PBA leading 8-6, the Sailfish got some breathing room with a 7-1 run with kills from Sam Wolf, Swan and Jordan Rush to take a 14-7 lead. A kill from Anna Gregerson sealed the match and sent Rubin Arena into a frenzy.
 
The freshmen Wolf and Swan led PBA with 14 kills and 12 kills, respectively. Schmidt tallied another triple-double consisting of 24 assists, 22 digs and 10 kills. Amber Rowoldt added 16 digs and eight kills. Emma Piper led PBA with 25 assists while Lilly Turner totaled a team-high 25 digs.
 
Eckerd got off to a strong start in the match. The Tritons dominated most of the first set. The visitors hit .371 win the set, which was their best performance of the night. The Tritons won the first set fairly easily, 25-17.
 
The Tritons started the second set with momentum on their side. Again, Eckerd held an early advantage, starting the set with a 7-1 lead. Things looked bleak for PBA as Eckerd led 19-10, but the Sailfish continued to fight. PBA ripped off a 7-2 run including a kill from Swan and a block from Gregerson and Wolf to make it 21-17, forcing a timeout. Out of the timeout, the 'Fish went on a 6-2 run to tie the set at 23. PBA ended the set with another 3-1 run as a kill from Schmidt clinched the 26-24 set win.
 
Eckerd got things back under control in the third set. The Tritons started the third set by getting out to a 15-2 lead. Eckerd cruised to a 25-15 set win as the Tritons took a 2-1 lead in the match.
 
PBA was forced to overcome a deficit again in the fourth set. The Sailfish trailed 14-10 before the 'Fish made their push. An 8-2 run including kills from Swan, Gregerson, Rowoldt and Rush gave PBA an 18-16 lead. Eckerd responded with a run of its own to regain a 22-21 advantage. Both teams traded points before PBA ended the set with a 3-0 run with a kill from Wolf and two blocks from Schmidt and Gregerson to win the set 25-23 and stay alive and force the dramatic fifth set which PBA won.
 
Tonight's win along with West Gerogia's win over Alabama-Huntsville gives the Sailfish a sliver of hope to make the South Region tournament. PBA's fate will be decided during the NCAA Selection Show on Monday.