Courtesy UNHWildcats.com
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Senior outside hitter and co-captain Tori Forrest (Powder Springs, Ga.) registered seven kills and three digs, but the University of New Hampshire volleyball team fell in straight sets to No. 11 University of Florida at Stephen C. O'Connell Center in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.
The set scores were 15-25, 9-25 and 15-25. New Hampshire finishes the year with a 21-9 overall record. UNH's 21 wins this season is the most in program history since the 2003 ledger (23-12, 12-2 America East). Florida improves to 23-6.
In the first match of the day, No. 19 Florida State University swept Arizona State University (25-13, 25-17, 25-21). UF and FSU will compete Friday, Dec. 4 (7 p.m.) in the second round of the tournament at Stephen C. O'Connell Center.
Alongside Forrest's seven kills, senior outside hitter Abby Brinkman (Brecksville, Ohio) landed five terminations and a service ace. Junior setter Keelin Severtson (Delray Beach, Fla.) turned in 13 assists, four digs, three kills and an ace. Senior defensive specialist Madison Lightfoot (Clarkston, Mich.) patrolled the backcourt with eight digs.
Florida was led by 10-kill efforts from sophomore middle blocker Rhamat Alhassan, junior right side hitter Alex Holston and senior outside hitter Ziva Recek. Senior outside hitter Mackenzie Dagostino directed the Gators to hit .442 in the match, dishing out 30 assists while slamming a match-high four service aces. Classmate Nikki O'Rourke shoveled out nine attacks to anchor the backline.
The Gators jetted out to an 8-5 lead out of the gate, forcing the Wildcats to burn a timeout early. Service errors plagued both sides as the score raised to 12-8. Brinkman narrowed the deficit to three with a kill, but UF preserved its three-point cushion at the 17-14 mark. The Gators rattled off three straight kills to double its lead as the Wildcats opted to huddle again. Junior middle blocker Demi Muses (Orangevale, Calif.) and Severtson ended the Florida run with a combo block, but the home team seized the last five points needed to take set one.
The Wildcats kept pace with the Gators in the early goings of the second stanza as the score was tangled at four. Florida rolled out a 7-1 run to carve out a 11-5 lead as UNH opted to use a timeout. Brinkman and Severtson tried to jumpstart the New Hampshire offense. However, the Florida offense coupled with four blocks in the frame was too much to overcome for UNH as the home team entered intermission with a 2-0 lead.
UNH did not fade away quietly in the deciding set, giving UF everything they had. New Hampshire notched the first point off a Florida miscue, but the home team dashed to an 8-4 lead early. The Wildcats responded with a flurry of points as senior middle blocker Cassidy Croci (Sylvania, Ohio) and Severtson landed back-to-back kills to make it an 8-7 contest in favor of the Gators. Florida notched four straight points, but New Hampshire retaliated with a 5-2 surge backboned by a trio of kills from Forrest as the visitors looked up at a 14-12 deficit. The Gators padded their lead with four straight points as the Wildcats opted to huddle. New Hampshire fought to extend the match as Brinkman and Severtson tallied points. However, a service ace followed by a kill from the Gators allowed the home team to clinch match point, ending the Wildcats' postseason run.
The end of the 2015 season marked the end of UNH careers for seniors Brenna Buckwalter(Evergreen, Colo.), Maggie Kenney (Merrimack, N.H.), Brinkman, Croci, Forrest and Lightfoot. The hexad led New Hampshire to an America East title and a berth in the NCAA Tournament in each of the past three seasons.