UM Upsets NCAA II No. 25 UWF

MOBILE, Ala-- The University of Mobile volleyball team picked up a huge win for the program Monday night by defeating NCAA Div II's 25th-ranked University of West Florida in a 3-2 (23-30, 30-20, 30-28, 30-32, 15-13) thriller.

 

The Lady Argos of West Florida came in with a 29-7 record and a 10-0 mark in conference play, while the Lady Rams have had similar success, entering with a 29-4 record and 8-0 conference mark. The match played out just like the similar records would suggest: plenty of back-and-forth action, with each team in it to the bitter end.

 

Game 1 started out like West Florida would roll, as the Lady Argos breezed ahead 8-1. But, Mobile battled back like a top team should and took a 10-9 lead. Things stayed close until a 15-15 tie, but a trio of Lady Ram attack errors opened the door for West Florida to pull away, and they did.

 

Down 0-1 at home, Mobile responded and led the whole way in the second game on their way to a 30-20 win. The Lady Rams out hit West Florida .424 to .182 in the game and got 5 kills from Paula Stilkey.

 

The third game was back-and-forth early, with neither team being able to pull away by more than 3 until the Lady Rams picked up a late 28-23 lead. The Lady Argos fought back, but after a well-placed Mobile timeout, the game ended on a West Florida service error.

 

Game 4 was basically the same as the third, but with the roles reversed. West Florida pulled away from a close contest late, but the Lady Rams battled back before a pair of service aces closed out the win for the Lady Argos to tie the match at 2-2.

 

West Florida took a 12-10 lead in the finale, but the Lady Rams held serve at home and went on a 5-1 run to take the match, thanks to a pair of late kills from Syretta Baldwin.

 

Mobile got standout performances from several players in the victory. Whitney Knight picked up a double-double with 20 kills and 13 digs, Stilkey did likewise, netting 17 kills and 16 digs, while Syretta Baldwin tallied 13 kills. Nicole Stokes finished with 26 assists and 16 digs, while Amber Presnell led the team with 17 digs.

 

The win nets the Lady Rams their 2nd straight 30-win season and the 3rd year program will enter the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Tournament this weekend with a 30-4 mark. The tournament will take place November 9-10 at Dillard University in New Orleans, Louisiana.