In their second meeting in as many weekends the Lee volleyball team came up short against the No. 11 Palm Beach Atlantic Sailfish, 3-1 to conclude the Holiday Inn Express Classic on Saturday afternoon from Walker Arena.
The Sailfish outlasted the Lady Flames in a nip and tuck first set winning, 29-27. After falling behind 10-9 in set two, the visitors went on a 16-5 run to take a commanding 2-0 lead in the match.
The Lady Flames showed some grit in set three with a 29-27 win. Lee scored the final three points to avoid the sweep thanks to a pair of kills from Bailey Kress and a PBA attack error. The Lady Flames fended off a couple of match points and rebounded after questionable call prolonged the set when it appeared they had secured the victory.
The momentum would not carry over into the fourth set however as the Sailfish delivered a convincing 25-12 performance to seal a perfect 4-0 mark for the weekend and an 8-0 start overall.
Silvia Sartori led the Lady Flames with 15 kills while Alex Reuter and Bailey Kress each had 10 slams. Hanna Matthews set up 40 points and pitched in three kills.
Errors proved costly however as Lee was guilty of 31 mistakes in settling for a .119 team attack percentage.
"One of things we learned about PBA last week was that they are a really good ball control team and they are probably one of the best passing teams in the country," said head coach Andrea Hudson. "I thought we didn't do a great job serving and we have to get tougher in that area. We are also still figuring out our rotation and finding what works but that's exactly why we wanted to play this tough schedule to start because it allows us to see our weaknesses and make adjustments early in the year."
Defensively MaKayla Beebe roamed the back line for 29 digs while Kress and Sartori tallied double-doubles with 12 and 10 digs respectively.
Amber Rowoldt helped deliver the victory for the Florida club with 20 kills and 15 digs. Molly Burkhardt set the offense up with 48 assists while also producing 16 digs. Jennie Anderson powered home 13 slams and had four blocks.
Lee (1-6) will continue a difficult early season schedule as it travels to Pensacola, Fla. to take part in the Argo Bash. The Lady Flames will face Harding University and Spring Hill College on Friday, before battling No. 13 West Florida in a non-conference matchup.
