The Keiser Seahawks battled Southeastern but fell 3-0 (25-18, 25-21, 25-20) in the Sun Conference semifinals Thursday at The Furnace in Lakeland, Fla.
Keiser (13-12) was led by Cece Worsham, who had 17 kills and hit .326 for 18.5 points. The Seahawks also put up 14 block assists, led by Aubree Valcourt with five, to finish with 7.0 blocks to Southeastern's 8.0. Southeastern (21-4) won the serving battle with seven aces to Keiser's one and hit .201 to Keiser's .116. The Seahawks were out-killed 44-36.
Keiser trailed 9-4 early in the opener after Southeastern scored five straight, four of them on Ashley Downs's serve, including two aces. The Seahawks later answered a 17-9 deficit with three straight kills, two by Worsham, to get within 17-12. Keiser got as close as 20-17 before Southeastern closed it out, 25-18.
The Seahawks were at their best in the second set. They took an early 5-2 lead and traded points with Southeastern through the middle of the set, going back in front 12-11 on a Southeastern attack error. Southeastern answered with a 6-0 run for a 17-12 lead, but Keiser fought back with four straight points to tie it at 18-18 and force a Southeastern timeout. Southeastern then scored four in a row on Jillian Zoerman's serve, including back-to-back aces, to go up 22-18. Keiser pulled within 24-21 before the Fire finished the set, 25-21.
In the third, Southeastern opened with an 8-1 lead behind two aces from Laura Bonomi's serve, forcing a Keiser timeout. The Seahawks fought back to 9-5 and again to 19-12 behind kills from Worsham and Valcourt, but never got closer. Down 24-14, Keiser rallied behind Marina Maia's serve, scoring the final six points of the run to cut it to 24-20 and prompt a Southeastern timeout. Southeastern closed it out, 25-20.
Valcourt hit .571 with four kills and five block assists. Daniela Cruz Sánchez added five kills, and Emma Friese had three kills and a block assist. Mallory Dills had 19 assists and Amie Molina had 15. Makenzi Bennett led the back row with 17 digs, followed by Molina with 14.
- Keiser hit .116 to Southeastern's .201 and was out-killed 44-36
- Southeastern had seven service aces to Keiser's one
- Keiser had 7.0 blocks to Southeastern's 8.0
- Cece Worsham had 17 kills, hit .326 and scored 18.5 points
- Aubree Valcourt hit .571 with four kills and five block assists
- Mallory Dills had 19 assists and Amie Molina had 15
- Makenzi Bennett led Keiser with 17 digs
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