By: Eduardo Almaguer / Staff Writer
While the Panthers’ win against Troy on Nov.12 may have meant nothing more than just another win for FIU, it may have been the last game the Trojans played in 2011.
On a night that marked the final game of the regular season for both teams, FIU (19-9, 10-6 SBC) swept Troy (16-14, 6-10) using explosive offense and exceptional defense.
The Panthers shattered their previous season-high mark in digs accumulated in three sets by posting 71, 13 more than they posted against UALR on Oct. 23. Attributing to that total was junior outside hitter Marija Prsa with a team-high 19. Prsa, who also had 11 kills, was one of two Panthers to post a double double. To no one’s surprise, outside hitter Jovana Bjelica was the second player with the double double with 24 kills and 17 digs. It was her tenth double double of the season.
The team collectively hit for a .282 mark, a top ten performance in the season, led by Bjelica’s .455. Setter Jessica Egan led the match with 48 assists and middle blocker Silvia Carli led her team with four block assists.
The first set was a tense battle between both teams, as there were a whopping 18 ties in the set. After finding themselves in a 11-9 hole, the Panthers posted three consecutive points on the heels of two kills and a service ace from Prsa to lead for the first time all set. Though they would never fall behind again, Troy would not let up their fierce attack.
A tight 26-26 score kept both teams on their toes until FIU came crashing through with back-to-back kills. Senior Sabrina Gonzalez sent Egan’s set over the net for the first kill followed by a Bjelica rocket to capture the set.
The extra-point set win seemed to have given the Panthers the answer to creating bigger leads in the second set. An error by Trojan Brittany McClelland was sandwiched in-between two Carli kills to give FIU a 17-11 lead.
Troy was not about to roll over, however, and rattled off four consecutive points to close the gap and make the game close again. After a Troy error made it 21-16 though, the Trojans called a timeout to regroup.
It was no good as FIU’s stellar defense held Troy to only two more kills in the set. The Panthers surfaced with their second set win, 25-18, after Prsa and Bejlica slammed down back-to-back kills to
It seemed as if FIU’s fatal flaw this season, relaxing after taking 2-0 leads, was happening again. As the third set opened, Troy took a commanding 7-1 lead and extended it to 12-5 after Bjelica and senior Andrea Lakovic committed two attacking errors.
After four consecutive Trojan points saw their team lead 16-9, FIU decided to stop the bleeding. The Panthers went on a 6-0 run to tie the game, thanks in part to three straight errors from Troy. The massive run was enough to shift the momentum to FIU’s side of the net, as the team went on to capture the set in a close battle, 25-23.
It was a good way to end the regular season for Panthers, as they will need the momentum on Nov. 17 when they play their first match in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament in the U.S Century Bank Arena.
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