By Ally Doty
The Pensacola State women’s volleyball team fell to rivals, Gulf Coast State College, Wednesday, Sept. 25 at the Lou Ross Center. This was their second meeting this season and after losing to GCSC in Panama City, the lady Pirates strived to defeat them.
Taylor Linton began the game with a serve that dipped too far down and into the net and gave GCSC the first point of the game. But PSC did not hesitate to take it back when Caitlin Chapman got the first kill. The points rallied back and forth, enchanting the crowd and a block by Bianca Brown brought the game back to life, giving PSC a two point lead. GCSC took a timeout that allowed the lady pirates to falter and the Commodores caught up 24-22, PSC. Their efforts were not enough, however, and the Pirates took the first set 25-22.
The second set seemed to drag on as PSC’s momentum dropped dramatically and the Commodores continued to keep the lead at the hand of Nikki McDaniel, who had four consecutive kills and then five more throughout the set. GCSC rallied the points all the way to 25 and took the second set win at 25-19.
There was a long volley by both teams at the beginning of the third set that ended with PSC taking the first point. This set followed suit of the second, leaving PSC trailing at the bottom and having to work their way up into the double digits. Chapman’s perfectly crafted serve resulted in an ace, being PSC’s only shining moment in the third set. The Commodores pushed harder and snatched the set for the win at 25-17.
Set four took a different turn. GCSC had a tough time keeping up with the Pirates’ continuous points and PSC proved that they belonged in the game. Chapman had six kills and Brown had four, sealing the set with a 25-13 win.
The sets were tied 2-2 and with the last set only going to 15 points, the Pirates had to step up their game.
The pointed rallied back and forth in the fifth set, but the Commodores pulled ahead halfway through the set with McDaniel leading the points again and forced PSC to call a timeout at 10-6, and again at 13-8. Coach Chris Laird and his squad were unable to pull to the double digits and lost in the fifth set to their rivals.
“They wanted it more than we did and they played harder than we did,” Laird said after the game. “We struggle with consistent mentality and consistent focus. We got beat by a better team, but we could have done a few things differently.”
The Pirates will play at home, in the Lou Ross Center, again Monday Sept. 30 against the University of Mobile.