Match Information
Score: Eckerd College 3, Valdosta State 0 (25-14, 25-16, 25-16)
Records: EC (1-0), VSU (0-1)
Location: St. Augustine Fla. (Flagler College)
 
ST. AUGUSTINE Fla. – The Valdosta State Blazer volleyball team dropped its season-opener to Eckerd College, 25-14, 25-16, 25-16) in the first match of the Flagler Saints Invitational, Friday morning. 
 
First Set: 
The Blazers hit the court for the first time since Spring 2021 and saw its first point for the match from senior Jessie Mooney with help from senior setter Tammy Reyes-Perez and an ace from Mooney for an early 2-0 lead. VSU tallied eight kills with five errors, hitting a .115, while Eckerd started the match off strong with 16 kills, one error and hit a blistering .652 for the set. VSU held a 9-8 lead on a kill from Reyes-Perez, but a kill from Rayna Mehta started a 10-0 run by the Tritons for an 18-9 lead.  VSU responded after its second timeout to pull within 18-12, scoring the next three points, but Eckerd finished the set using a 9-2 run. 
 
Second Set: 
Eckerd started off with a 4-1 lead, but the Blazers caught back up with a kill by Mooney and a block assist from graduate transfer Deona Mims and sophomore Kennedy DeLuca tied the set at four. Eckerd extended the lead to 12-7 on an ace from Krysten Garrison leading to a timeout by the Blazers. The Tritons stretched the lead to 19-9 with an 11-3 run since VSU pulled to within 8-6 earlier in the set.  Eckerd won the second set 25-16.
 
Third Set:
The Blazers came out in the third set, scoring three of the first four points, but Eckerd responded in kind to tie the set at 3-3 with the first of a match-high seven miscues in the set by the Blazers.  VSU took a 4-3 lead on an error by the Tritons, but another big run proved costly for the Blazers.  EC scored 10 of the next 12 points for a 13-5 lead.  The never-give-up Blazers roared back to pull within 14-12 using an 8-1 run.  During the spurt, freshman Kylie Stroehlein had four kills to highlight the run.   Later, Mims pulled the Blazers within 17-16 on a kill, but Eckerd finished the match, outscoring VSU 8-0 for a 25-16 victory.
 
Inside the Numbers: 
The Blazers finished the match with 25 kills, but 17 errors proved costly as the team hit .093 for the match. Eckerd recorded 47 kills with just six miscues and hit a blistering .461 for the match, while hitting over .600 in the first set and over .500 in the second.  Mooney and Mims led the Blazers with seven kills each, while Reyes-Perez had a team-high 20 assists.  Stroehlein tallied six kills in her first match as a Blazer, along with four digs.  Eckerd had 11 kills from Anna Jungjohann and Mehta, while Garrison had 28 assists to lead the team.

UP NEXT:
VSU faces Belmont Abbey at 5 p.m. Friday, and is scheduled to battle the host Saints Saturday at 1 p.m. and Lewis University (Ill.) Saturday at 5 p.m. to conclude the tournament. Fans can access links to live stats, audio/video streaming, ticket information and more at vstateblazers.com on the volleyball schedule page.