Posted: Oct 08, 2025
Tampa, Fla.- Three different players recorded career highs in kills Wednesday night as the #1 Florida SouthWestern State Buccaneers shook off a slow start for their 14th straight win, going on the road and defeating Hillsborough 3-1 to improve to 18-1 on the year.
The Bucs got off to a slow start in the first, falling behind 7-2 to begin the set after a string of errors on the FSW side of the net. They worked their way back in with a 5-2 run, but Hillsborough rattled off a 6-1 run of their own from there to boost their lead back to 15-8 midway through the period. The Bucs slowly inched closer from there, eventually tying the score at 20 on a block from Letizia Okonofua and Valentina Zevallos. FSW went ahead on an ace from Irina Makinen and had three chances at set point but couldn't close it out as Hillsborough came back to tie the score back up at 24 before back to back errors to end the set was the Bucs undoing as the Hawks claimed the set 27-25 to go ahead 1-0 in the match. It was the fourth straight first set loss for FSW.
The Bucs got off to a much better start in the second, scoring the first four points and jumping out to a 6-2 advantage to begin the period. Hillsborough fought back though, evening things up at 9 before a 3-0 FSW run put the Bucs back in front 12-9 midway through the set. Four Hillsborough hitting errors in a five point stretch gave FSW some breathing room and they never looked back, closing out the set on an 8-2 run to take it 25-15 and even the match at a set a piece.
The third followed a similar script as once again FSW raced out to an early 4-0 lead before Hillsborough came back to tie the score at 10 at the 20 point mark. After trading the next four point, the Bucs stepped on the gas, closing the set on a 13-4 run to secure it 25-16 to go ahead 2-1 in the match.
The fourth set was the most even early on as the Bucs and Hawks traded points back and forth to a 12-12 deadlock midway through the period. Hillsborough pushed ahead 15-12, but the Bucs answered with a 5-0 run of their own highlighted by a pair of Magi Milicevic kills to retake the lead 17-15. A block from Patrycja Labucka and Bethyna Kayser got the Bucs to 20 first and they kept their distance from the Hawks from there, finishing things off 25-20 to seal the match 3-1.
Three different Bucs recorded new career highs in kills in the win as Milicevic finished off a match high 18 and hit .390 while Labucka collected 13 and Kayser had 8 to lead the way for FSW. Makinen dished out 47 assists while libero Sarah Webb notched 18 digs and a team best 4 aces for the Bucs.
FSW runs their win streak to 14 games, improving to 18-1 overall and 7-0 in Citrus Conference play to remain on top of the league standings. Hillsborough falls to 8-10 overall and 2-5 in league action.
The Bucs are back in action on Saturday back home at Suncoast Credit Union Arena when they host Santa Fe in a 2 PM first serve in Fort Myers. The Bucs encourage fans to bring wrapped candy that will be donated for the James Stephens Elementary Fall Festival.