WINTER PARK, Fla. – Plagued by a season-high 34 attack errors in the opening match of the day at the Rollins Invitational, the Anderson University volleyball team was unable to hold off Mary, as the Marauders topped the Trojans, 3-2, (25-23, 20-25, 15-25, 25-23, 15-8), but AU salvaged a split by sweeping Florida Southern, 3-0 (29-27, 25-19, 25-17), Saturday afternoon at Jenkins Fieldhouse.

"I was proud of our effort to bounce back against an undefeated Florida Southern team after an extremely disappointing loss in the opener," said Anderson head coach Todd Hay. "Now our focus turns to our conference opener at UVA Wise and first-place Tusculum."

Anderson improved to 5-3 on the season with its three wins in the Sunshine State, while UMary moved to 2-6 with its win over the Trojans. Florida Southern had its win streak halted at three and slipped to 3-1 on the season.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Match #1
Mary 3, Anderson 2,
(25-23, 20-25, 25-15, 25-23, 15-8)
Seniors Regan Duty and Noelle Knutsen shared team-high honors with 13 kills apiece, with Duty adding three block assists. Knutsen posted four block assists and recorded a .321 hitting percentage. Senior Hannah Worsham tallied a season-high nine kills on a .412 hitting percentage and notched four block assists. Sophomore Sadie Kluner also tallied nine kills to go along with two solo blocks and one block assist in the opener.

Sophomore Tabitha Wheeler chipped in seven kills, 13 digs and a pair of block assists, while junior setter Madison Roy handed out 49 assists and posted her third double-double of the season with 11 digs. The North Myrtle Beach native also recorded four block assists. Senior Meghan DeVaux recorded a match-best 21 digs, while junior Lindsay McCurley notched 11 digs. Freshman hitter Hannah Neff equaled her season-high with four aces.

The Marauders Kennedy Drewis led all players with 14 kills and chipped in five block assists.

Match #2
Anderson 3, Florida Southern 0
(29-27, 25-19, 25-17)
Maya Learmonth notched a match-high 14 kills behind a .480 hitting percentage and chipped in four digs, with Kluner adding nine kills on the strength of a .353 attacking accuracy. Duty posted six kills on a .357 attacking percentage to go along with three block assists, while Worsham also tallied six kills, three service aces and three block assists.

Roy recorded a match-high 28 assists, with DeVaux notching a team-high 14 digs. Petrilli and Neff each came up with nine digs apiece.

The Moccasins Zoe Lowe led Florida Southern with nine kills.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Match 1 vs. UMary
First Set
The Trojans fell behind early and trailed by as many as seven (19-12) before Duty knocked down her first kill of the day to ignite a run of eight unanswered points by the Black and Gold that gave AU its first lead.

Kluner and Knutsen fueled the rally and an ace from Neff gave AU a late 22-20 advantage before the Marauders scored five of the final six points to claim the win.

Second Set
The Trojans never trailed and used an 8-3 surge to take a 12-7 lead before UMary countered with four straight points to climb within just one.

Following an AU timeout, the Trojans answered with a 5-1 run of its own to build a 17-12 lead and went on to the five-point victory.

Third Set
Duty posted five kills in the third frame and the Trojans used a .360 hitting accuracy to claim the double-digit win.

Duty and Worsham combined on a block to snap an 8-8 deadlock and the Trojans would not trail again. The Marauders stayed within three until Kluner knocked down her eighth kill of the match to trigger a closing 8-1 scoring outburst by the Trojans.

Fourth Set
AU jumped out to a quick 6-1 lead and still led, 14-8, before UMary went on a 9-1 scoring rampage that gave the Marauders a 17-15 edge.

The score was then deadlocked three more times before the Trojans pushed out to a 23-20 advantage, but AU was unable to hold the late lead, as UMary scored the final five points of the set to claim the win.

Fifth Set
The Marauders carried their momentum over into the final set, as they posted a .444 attacking percentage.

UMary jumped out to an 8-3 advantage and the Trojans were unable to recover, as the Marauders scored the final four points of the match.

Match 2 vs. Florida Southern
First Set
With both squads posting a .357 hitting percentage in the opening frame, Duty, Learmonth and Kluner combined for 14 kills out of the gate.

Neither team was able to build more than a four-point lead and after Neff gave the Trojans a late, 23-22, edge with an ace, the Moccasins countered with two quick points and were on the verge of claiming the opening set.

But AU held off set point behind a kill from Kluner and went on to edge Florida Southern on a Moccasin miscue and Worsham's fourth kill of the set.

Second Set
The Trojans boasted a .391 hitting percentage, with Learmonth knocking down six kills.

A kill from Learmonth snapped a 9-9 deadlock and the Trojans steadily built a six-point cushion, at 21-15, before going on to claim the seven-point win.

Third Set
AU trailed just once early, before grabbing a lead they would not surrender when Duty and Knudsen combined for a block assist. The Black and Gold led most of the way, but were unable to craft more than a two-point advantage until going on a late 9-3 run.

ANDERSON STAT OF THE DAY
The Trojans began the day by recording its second-lowest hitting percentage of the season (.138) against UMary, but bounced back to post its highest accuracy of the season (.368) against Florida Southern.

NOTABLES
• Junior setter Madison Roy has three double-doubles on the season.
• Sophomore Sadie Kluner has posted double-figure kills in four matches and has averaged more than 10 kills per match over the last six contests.
• Lindsay McCurley has reached double-digit digs in five of AU's eight matches.
• Hannah Neff leads AU with 14 service aces on the season.
• Meghan DeVaux has reached double-figure digs in four consecutive matches and five overall.
• Tabitha Wheeler came up with a season-high 13 digs against UMary.
• Maya Learmonth has tallied double-figure kills in five of the last seven matches.
• Regan Duty has reached double-digit kills in five matches and is hitting .309 on the season.
• Noelle Knutsen has reached double-figure kills in four matches and leads AU with 27 total blocks.

UP NEXT
Following a four-day layoff, Anderson is slated to open South Atlantic Conference action with a visit to UVA Wise, on Friday. First-serve against the Cavaliers is scheduled for 6 p.m.