Hickory, N.C. – Florida Tech Volleyball was back in action this afternoon as they wrapped up the Lenoir-Rhyne Season Opening Invitational. The Panthers finished their stay in North Carolina with contests against Lees-McRae and the hosts of this weekend's action, Lenoir-Rhyne. After a 2-0 start to the season yesterday, the Panthers came into today's matches looking to continue building momentum early in the year.

MATCH ONE:
Final: Florida Tech Panthers 3, Lees-McRae Bobcats 0                                                                                                     
Set Recap: (25-23), (25-13), (25-14)
Records: Florida Tech (3-0) | Lees-McRae (0-3)
Location: Shuford Arena | Hickory, North Carolina

STATS OF THE MATCH:
First Set: Florida Tech Panthers 25, Lees-McRae Bobcats 23

• The Panthers first point of day two in North Carolina came from an Ayisha Missipo kill from the right side.
• Following back-to-back service aces from Courtney Capar, Tech jumped out to an early 3-0 lead.
• After the Panthers led 6-1, Lees-McRae came right back with an 8-3 run to tie the score at 9-9.
• Kills from Devyn Glassgold and Cordelia Kearns plus a huge block from Isabelle Clark helped Tech reclaim the lead and take a 12-10 advantage into the middle set.
• Both teams traded points all the way through the middle of the set, but Tech found separation after a Clark kill and led 19-16.
• The Bobcats would fight their way back into the set, but Tech rolled to grab their first set win of the day behind great defense.

 Second Set: Florida Tech Panthers 25, Lees-McRae Bobcats 13

• After a competitive first set, the Panthers throttled down in set number two. They jumped out to an early 4-0 lead thanks to a kill from Elisa Broggio and an ace from Kenzie Delacher.
• The Panthers then extended their lead out to 12-4 and remained in control of the second set.
• Huge digs from Cordelia Kearns and Kari Voelstad Bogen helped Tech keep the Bobcats at bay.
• Lees-McRae did put some points on the board, but sneaky kills from Setter Kelly Merz pushed the lead out to 18-9.
• Tech used a combination of Bobcat service errors, blocks, and kills from the outside to close out the set and take a 2-0 lead in the match.

 Third Set: Florida Tech Panthers 25, Lees-McRae Bobcats 17

• After a dominant second set and the match on the line, the Panthers knew Lees-McRae would attempt to claw their way back into the contest
• The first ten points of the third set were split evenly, as neither side could find early separation.
• With the set tied at seven, Florida Tech finally re-found their rhythm and went on a run.
• Tech quickly jumped out in front and took a 16-11 lead with kills from Ashley Rants and Cordelia Kearns.
• The Panthers kept up their intensity in order to go on another run and take a huge 22-13 lead.
• Kills from Scarlett Kimbrell and Isabelle Clark sealed the deal as Florida Tech picked up their third straight sweep to start the season.

NOTABLE PANTHERS:

• Cordelia Kearns – 11 Kills, 16 Digs, 4 Aces,
• Kelly Merz – 14 Assists
• Kenzie Delacher – 13 Assists, 16 Digs
• Isabelle Clark – 4 Blocks, 2 Solo Blocks

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE:

• Panthers start the 2025 season going 9-0 in set play

MATCH TWO:
Final: Florida Tech Panthers 0, Lenoir-Rhyne Bears 3                                                                                                
Set Recap: (20-25), (23-25), (11-25)
Records: Florida Tech (3-1) | Lenoir-Rhyne Bears (3-0)
Location: Shuford Arena | Hickory, North Carolina

STATS OF THE MATCH:
First Set: Florida Tech Panthers 20, Lenoir-Rhyne Bears 25

• To start the final contest of the weekend for the Panthers, both sides began trading kills to make the scoreline 4-4 in the early stages of the set.
• Neither side could find any separation as the contest reached a 10-10 stalemate through the first twenty points.
• Cordelia Kearns, Devyn Glassgold, and Elisa Broggio helped the Panthers stay neck and neck with the Bears as the scoreline remained tied at 13.
• Lenoir-Rhyne earned the match's first three-point lead at 17-14, but a big kill and block from Ayisha Missipo helped Tech fight right back into the set.
• Unfortunately for the Panthers, they were only able to trade points and couldn't find a big enough run to close the gap as the Bears took set one.

 Second Set: Florida Tech Panthers 23, Lenoir-Rhyne Bears 25

• The second set started out like the first, with both teams trading points and the set tied at 3-3.
• Lenoir-Rhyne then went on a small 4-0 run and looked like they were going to control the match.
• However, after a Jordan Willis timeout settled the Panthers down, they went on a huge 10-2 run of their own to take a 13-8 lead.
• Kills from Devyn Glassgold and Ayisha Missipo, along with stellar defense from Kari Voelstad Bogen helped the Panthers stay out in front and lead 21-14.
• Despite the big run from tech, Lenoir-Rhyne answered back with an unanswered 9-0 run of their own to take back the lead at 23-21.
• With all the momentum, the Bears were able to close out the second set despite a kill from Isabelle Clark.

 Third Set: Florida Tech Panthers 11, Lenoir-Rhyne Bears 25

• Lenoir-Rhyne continued their hot streak into the third set, jumping out to an early 3-0 lead.
• A Bears service error and a kill from Cordelia Kearns got the Panthers on the board but they still trailed 7-2.
• Ashley Rants brought a spark to the court with multiple kills, but the Bears continued their run and led 15-5.
• While the Panthers never gave in and kept playing strong defense, they were on the wrong end of too many rallies as the Bears took the third set and the match.

NOTABLE PANTHERS:

• Kari Voelstad Bogan – 19 Digs, 5 Assists
• Elisa Broggio - 5 Service Aces, 4 Kills

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE:

• The Panthers go 3-1 at the Lenoir-Rhyne Season Opening Invitational
• Kari Veolstad Bogan totaled 35 digs over both games

UP NEXT: Florida Tech will return home for just two days before heading across the country (and an ocean) for a four-game set in Hawaii. The Panthers will compete in the Aloha State Showdown against Hawaii Pacific (hosts), Chaminade, Central Washington and Hawaii Hilo. These contests will stretch across three days from 9/11 to 9/13, with the first match taking place on the 11^th at 11:00 PM ET.

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