Selkridge kills unlucky for Rollins!
The No. 6 University of Tampa volleyball team remained undefeated in Sunshine State Conference play by defeating Rollins College in a Friday night straight-sets sweep. The three set victory improved the Spartans SSC record to a perfect 10–0. The Spartans now sit with a 21-3 tally on the top of the SSC standings. The Tars of Rollins College fall to 14-11, with a 5-4 mark in conference play.
Reigning National Player of the Week Danielle Selkridge paced the Tampa offense with 13 kills. The senior received help from Holly Reschke and Jackie Neff, who added 11 and eight kills respectively.
The Spartans won the first set 25-21 with Jessica Yingling leading the way. The captain contributed four kills and two big block solos. Setter Kahley Patrick had 10 assists and a pair of digs to round out the premier set. Tampa continued its consistent play into the second stanza, finishing with a 25-22 victory. The Spartans resisted a late set surge by the Tars, due to strong defensive play. Libero Frances Cardenas had five of the Spartans 17 digs.
For the third frame, Rollins was once again overmatched by Selkridge. The middle hitter swung for a staggering .667 attack percentage. The Spartan ensemble of Reschke, Neff and Meagan Burke added four kills each, as UT rounded out the game with a 25-14 final set victory.
Meanwhile, at the St Lucia Beach Volleyball Tournament- the ninth stop of the 2012 NORCECA Circuit at Pigeon Point Beach, the Virgin Islands duo of Canice Marquis and Drexel Glasgow were ousted after losing their two matches on Friday in the double-elimination event.
First up, Marquis and Glasgow lost 2 -0 to the Trinidad A team 21-12, 21-11 and then the duo lost to Trinidad “B” 21-0, 21-0.
The pair had been practicing consistently at the Moorings and was looking forward to improve on their overall ranking after the last event they participated in Antigua, but it just goes to show that competitive matches mean more than practice as teams prepare for Regional Tournaments. The top pairing practicing regularly against other local players is not sufficient preparation to then face the likes of the Trini’s or the USA.
The BVIAVA is keen to attract more interested athletes to participate in beach volleyball as it is one of the fastest growing sports, gaining popularity over the indoor game worldwide. However, they also need to implement a proper plan.
The Volleyball calendar therefore needs to include Beach Volleyball as a local tournament and then also an invitation tournament involving the likes of the USVI, Anguilla, St Maarten to further hone skills and gain an understanding of the levels of play on other Islands.
Volleyball has talked about a beach tournament for a while and Dawn Crabbe of Play to Win Sports has organized one, so it is the hope that the BVIAVA will be fully committed to that venture and look to see how they can develop the sport from there on. Players would then to go to these tournaments much better prepared to succeed.
Playing more competitive matches against our local rivals should be a model followed by all sports rather than heading off into the unknown and suffering defeats, despite leaving the Territory high in false expectation.
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