GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Junior setter Cole Dawley (Charleston, S.C.) finished with 22 assists, five kills and six digs as the College of Charleston (18-13) dropped a 3-0 decision to No. 14 Florida in a First Round NCAA Tournament match in Gainesville, Fla. on Thursday, December 3. The Gators claimed the victory by scores of 25-21, 25-17 and 25-18.
A program with 20 NCAA appearances, Florida came out strong in Game 1, pushing out to advantages of 6-3 and 10-6. Consecutive kills by junior setter Cole Dawley (Charleston, S.C.) and sophomore middle blocker Sarah Havel (Carmel, Ind.) narrowed the gap to 10-8 before a 5-2 run gave the Gators their largest lead of the set at 15-10. Trailing 17-11, the College of Charleston clawed back to within 17-15 behind a 4-0 run but would get no closer as Florida notched a 25-21 victory.
The Cougars kept the second set close early on as they stayed within three points until a 6-0 run by the Gators pushed a two-point advantage to eight at 15-7. With the score at 19-11, CofC used a 4-2 stretch to close to within 21-15 but it would not be enough as Florida closed out the 25-17 victory and pulled ahead 2-0 in the match.
It was a different story at the start of Game 3 as the College of Charleston took a 4-2 lead but Florida responded with a 10-3 run that gave them a 12-7 advantage. CofC stayed close once again as they pulled to within 14-12 and 18-16 before a 3-0 run stretched the Gators lead to 21-16. From there, Florida closed out the set, and the match, with a 25-18 victory.
Sophomore outside hitter Colleen Ward led the Gators with a match-high 14 kills while sophomore setter Kelly Murphy finished with 31 assists, seven kills and a .700 hitting percentage. Sophomore outside hitter Kristy Jaeckel added eight kills at a .615 hitting percentage and senior libero Elyse Cusack led the defense with a match-high 12 digs.
Cole Dawley led the way for the College of Charleston with 22 assists, six digs, five kills and a .625 hitting percentage while junior right side hitter Ginny Phillips (Raleigh, N.C.) notched nine kills, six digs and four assists. Sophomore middle blocker Sarah Havel (Carmel, Ind.) finished with seven kills.
Florida moves on to face Florida International in the second round while the College of Charleston concludes the 2009 campaign with an 18-13 overall record.