WINTER HAVEN, Fla.- On the docket Tuesday night in Winter Haven was not just a huge Suncoast Conference matchup, but a huge NJCAA matchup as the #6 Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers traveled on the road to take on the #7 Polk State Eagles in a battle of two of the Nation's Top 10 teams. The Bucs jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the match, pulling out a pair of close sets, but Polk came back to win the third to extend the match to the fourth where FSW dominated, winning it 25-14 to win the match 3-1 and remain unbeaten in Suncoast Conference play on the year.  

 

As expected, the match was intense from the start as the Bucs and the Eagles split the first 20 points of the first set to find themselves in a 10-10 deadlock.  FSW took a lead and then extended it to three on a solo block from Kianie Cummings before a big kill out of the middle from Yasso Amin pushed it to four at 20-16 late in the set.  Polk got back to within three at 22-19, but the Bucs scored three of the final four of the set including a kill from Maria Petkova to finish it off to take the set 25-20 and a 1-0 lead in the match. 

 

The Bucs jumped out to a huge lead early in the second thanks to the serving of Julia De Sa and Yasso Amin. De Sa dropped in a pair of aces to give FSW a quick 3-0 advantage and three straight aces from Amin moments later stretched the lead to 8-2. The Bucs held the six point lead to the midway point of the set at 13-7 but a 3-0 run by the Eagles cut the FSW lead in half and put the Bucs back on alert.  A kill over the block from Kellen Valentim and a solo block from Petkova cushioned the Bucs lead back to five, which is where it was later in the set at 20-15.  Just when it looked like the Bucs had things in control, a 4-0 burst from the Eagles made it a one point game and forced an FSW timeout.  A kill from De Sa made it 22-20, but a scoring dispute had the scoreboard reading 22-21 which is what the officials eventually went with after a long discussion. The Bucs didn't let the error affect them though, scoring the final two points of the set on a hookup from setter Fiona Baker to Amin and then on a Polk ball handling error to close out the set 25-22. 

 

As good as the first two sets were, the third was even better.  The two teams went through the first 21 points without either team ever leading by more than one, with FSW holding a slight advantage at 11-10. Back to back kills from Petkova and Cummings off overpasses from Amin's big serve gave the Bucs a three point lead and forced an Eagle timeout.  Then it was Polk's turn for a run, as the Eagles scored six of the next seven to erase the Bucs lead and take a 16-14 lead of their own.  It continued to go back and forth before the two teams found themselves tied just three points from the finish line at 22-22.  The Eagles weren't ready to go home just yet as they pulled out the third 25-23 to stay alive in a set that featured 14 ties and six lead changes.  

 

The Bucs turned to their block in a huge start to the fourth set.  Amin got a solo stuff on the first play of the set and Cummings teamed with Riley Oglevie and then Petkova for rejections to push FSW out to a 7-1 lead moments later.  A kill from De Sa gave the Bucs a 10 point lead at 15-5 midway through the set and FSW continued to push, going up 20-9 on Amin's fourth ace of the match. With things all but decided, the final score was the last question that remained in the fourth.  That answer came moments later as a Polk attack sailed wide, sealing a 25-14 win for FSW to take the match 3-1. 

 

The Bucs hit .278 in the match with De Sa leading the way with 14 kills and Amin following close behind with 13.  Petkova and Valentim both just missed reaching double digits in kills with 9 each while Cummings had 7 on 18 swings in the win.  Baker quarterbacked the offense with a career high 50 assists in the victory while the serving of FSW gave Polk troubles all night as the Bucs finished with 10 aces including 7 combined for Amin and De Sa.  Petkova and Viktoriya Ivanova tied for the team lead with 12 digs in the win while De Sa notched 10 for her third double-double of the season.  The Bucs block was solid all night as FSW matched a season high with 13 stuffs including 6 each from Amin and Cummings in the middle. 

 

FSW wins its fourth in a row to improve to 13-3 overall and 6-0 in Suncoast Conference play as they inch closer to their first conference title in program history while Polk falls to 6-3 overall and 5-2 in league play with one left to go. 

 

The Bucs will close out their 2021 home schedule later this week as they host State College of Florida in conference action Thursday at 6 PM before hosting Palm Beach on Sophomore Day Saturday at 2 PM.