WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - The Palm Beach Atlantic beach volleyball team had the opportunity for a signature victory today as they hosted the No. 15 Florida International University Panthers and Florida Southern College in a tri-match. The Sailfish came within points of taking down the nationally ranked Panthers before ultimately falling 3-2 in the morning before defeating the Moccasins 4-1 in the afternoon.
Match 1: PBA - 2 | #15 FIU - 3
The Sailfish and the Panthers met for the fourth time ever on the sand today and PBA was on the verge of earning their first victory over the instate DI opponent. The Panthers jumped out ahead as they took the No. 2 match over PBA's
Ashleigh Holweger and
Rebekah Machovec 21-14, 21-17. The No. 4 match went down to the wire as
Julia Golichowski and
Natalie Skopalova put on an impressive performance and battled their way back after dropping the first set 21-18. The duo took the second 21-19 but with the third set tied at 13, the Panthers scored the next two points to go ahead 2-0 in the match. The Sailfish got on the board as
Karla Cantero and
Abigail Mason took down the No. 5 position match in straight sets 21-16, 21-17.
Lunden Evans and
Mya Krystosek evened the match as they captured the No. 1 position match in a three-set battle where they prevailed 21-13, 16-21, 15-11. With the match tied 2-2, it all came down to the No. 3 match but FIU came out on top as
Savannah DeCarlo and
Gabriella Aziz fell in two sets 21-14, 21-15.
Match 2: PBA - 4 | FSC - 1
The Sailfish turned their attention to the Mocs in the afternoon as they looked to take down FSC for the second time this season. Evans and Krystosek rolled at the No. 1 position taking the first set 21-5 and the second 21-16. Holweger and Machovec remained at the No. 2 position and took down their opponents 21-8, 21-11 while DeCarlo and Aziz won the No. 3 match 21-12, 21-12.
Kayleigh Hall and
Eva Hertz jumped up to the No. 5 position after playing winning the extra match against FIU and continued their success winning 21-10, 21-10. The lone defeat for the Sailfish came at the No. 4 match as Golichowski and Skopalova fell in two close sets 21-19, 21-19.
The Sailfish are back in action this weekend as they head to Miami to play on March 17 and 18. They play North Florida and Erskine on Friday followed by Jacksonville and Florida Gulf Coast on Saturday.
