TAMPA, Fla.- The Drury Panthers won twice on Saturday and completed their road trip in Florida by winning three of their four games as they defeated 25th ranked Tampa 3-2 (25-19, 20-25, 26-24, 19-25, 17-15), and Rollins 3-1 (23-25, 25-18, 25-14, 25-11).
 
The Panthers finished the day with a 6-2 record, and four of their wins have come against nationally ranked teams. Both of Drury's losses have also come against the top 25 after falling in their season opener last week at 22nd ranked Central Missouri and to 23rd ranked Florida Southern on the road Friday.
 
The Panthers picked off their fourth ranked opponent this year with a 3-2 win at 25th ranked Tampa in their first match on Saturday. The loss was the first of the season for the Spartans who fell to 6-1.
 
With the game tied 1-1, Drury fought off Tampa's set-point in the third and rallied with four straight points to take a 2-1 lead with a 26-24 win in the third set. The Spartans won the fourth set 25-19 and had the Panthers at match-point leading 14-13 in the fifth, but Drury responded scoring four of the next five points to take the win. Kendra Sater delivered the final blow to Tampa with a kill that clinched the victory for the Panthers as they won the fifth set 17-15.
 
Bentley Mara led Drury with 20 kills and had back-to-back kills in the Panthers four-point run to win the third set. Sater added 43 assists while Kayla Allison provided 22 digs.
 
The Panthers completed their four-game Florida trip with a 3-1 win over Rollins (2-5). Drury lost the first set 25-23 but then took over winning the next three sets 25-18, 25-14, and 25-11.
 
Drury posted a .314 hitting percentage in the game, and four Panthers reached double-figures in kills led by Mara's 17. Sater had 43 assists and added 19 digs.
 
Drury will play their home opener and their first Great Lakes Valley Conference game on Friday when they host William Jewell. Game time is 7 p.m. in the O'Reilly Family Event Center.
 
 
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