Gradual decline in 3rd, 4th sets lead to 4-set loss to Florida State
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Outside hitter Polina Shemanova seemed to have recorded another crosscourt kill as she launched a spike from the left side, placing it perfectly to where no Florida State player could dig to save the rally in the fourth set. Originally called a point for Syracuse, the second referee made her way to the first official, and the pair overturned the much-needed point as a result of a rotation error.
After the call was overturned, head coach Leonid Yelin argued with the official, claiming the official kept changing her explanation for the change although he admitted the call was correct postgame. Regardless, the overturn deflated SU and on the next play, Florida State kept the rally alive, digging it back to the Orange in the direction of setter Elena Karakasi. But instead of setting up an attack, Karakasi spiked the ball far out of bounds. Yelin called a timeout and spent a minute with Karakasi before rejoining the huddle.
Syracuse (16-12, 5-11 Atlantic Coast) fell in four sets to Florida State (19-6, 11-4 ACC) on Sunday, losing the second time this season to the Seminoles who defeated the Orange on Halloween in five sets. Despite a strong second set — the only set SU won — the Orange deflated in the final two sets.
The overturned point and Karakasi’s attack error were just two plays of a 7-0 Seminole run that put Florida State up 13-5 in the set. Other errors in the run included a Shemanova spike that went wide left, a miscommunication between the front row and back row on a bump, and a poor touch error by Syracuse. SU couldn’t dig itself out of the hole it created and eventually dropped the set 25-17 with Naomi Franco being blocked assisted on match point.
“I think it just boils down to we were tired, and we weren’t ready to play,” middle blocker Abby Casiano said about the third and fourth sets. “We couldn’t get ourselves in check to have that fire, have that drive to push.”
Through all four sets, SU recorded 11 total blocks, a .244 hitting percentage and 66 digs. In comparison, the Seminoles only notched five total blocks, a .226 hitting percentage and 59 digs. But these statistics weren’t the main factor in the outcome of the match — it was the dominance the Seminoles had on the offensive end.
Florida State outscored Syracuse 159-131 in total attack attempts, notching 58 kills in the process, which was 11 more than the Orange. The Seminoles displayed a variety of kill shots whether crosscourt spikes, center court spikes, tip shots and a couple of sneak kills from their setter, Lily Tessier, which caught Syracuse off guard.
“For their hitters, they don’t make too many errors,” Casiano said. “Even if you get a huge block setup on them, they’re very smart to tip around (or) hit off the block.”
SU showed promising signs, specifically in the second set. After easily losing the first set, the Orange completely dominated the entire second set, never trailing except when the score was 1-0. Building a maximum lead of 11, the Orange cruised in the second set generating 15 kills and a .375 hitting percentage while limiting the Seminoles to seven kills and a -.029 hitting percentage.
From there, Florida State controlled the offensive end and gradually drained the Orange.
This weekend in addition to Florida State, SU faced No. 3 Pittsburgh for the second time and after trailing two sets to none, were able to bounce back and extend the match into five sets before falling off in the final set. SU’s exhaustion carried over from Friday and contributed to the gradual decline.
“We were kind of tight from the Friday game with Pittsburgh,” middle blocker Marina Markova said. “When we needed to continue, we couldn’t today.”
The struggle to close out sets and matches has been an issue for the Orange in their slump, contributing to a 2-10 record in their last twelve matches, which were all ACC opponents. While conference play was expected to be more difficult, SU previously has had opportunities to capitalize in these matches including holding set points in multiple sets against now No. 1 Louisville.
A win this weekend would’ve helped SU’s case for an at-large bid for the NCAA Tournament as both the Seminoles and the Panthers are ranked higher than SU in the rating percentage index. To close out the regular season, Duke travels to Syracuse next Sunday, a must-win opportunity for the Orange. The Blue Devils lost to SU early in the season in straight sets. The following Wednesday, SU visits North Carolina State for its second matchup of the season to conclude the regular season.
