Caroline Bryant
Editor-in-Chief
On Nov. 23 the Mocs celebrated seven seniors with a 3-2 win against RV Nova Southeastern. Back-and-forth wins between the Sharks ended with a three point lead in the fifth set with help from senior transfer student Sandra Sasaski.
Their victory finalized their 15-13 overall and 9-11 Sunshine State Conference (SSC) records. While the unexpected weather led to six postponements this season, the Mocs continued to hold their own, including the most notable match being their 3-1 upset against No. 14 Lewis at the beginning of the season.
Several veterans led the leader board this season, the most occupied by Sasaki. Sasaki led the team in points, totaling 338.0, and kills, totaling 313. Senior Madison Fowler followed behind with 260.5 points and senior Zoe Lowe with 222 kills. Fowler and Sasaki both earned SSC All-Conference awards, in addition to Sasaski earning a spot on the second team, and Fowler on the third team for the second year in a row.
Fowler and graduate student Mackenzie Petermann will end as career leaders in the FSC Volleyball 2024 Record Book, with Fowler tying with Michelle Kurtigs (1983-86) for the No. 10 spot for career digs, ending with 106.0 after the game against Nova Southeastern.
Petermann also finished in the Mocs 1,000 kill club, which she joined in 2023.
Sophomore Mary Kate Mulvaney made two leader board appearances with 533 season assists and 38 service aces. She improved with 17 more aces than her previous year as a freshman.
On defense, graduate student and libero Caroline Chambers piloted 391 digs, a 24 dig increase from 2023 and ending her career with 811 total.
Despite these monumental moments, the Mocs did not make the postseason for the 2024 season. To heighten their chances for next year, Head Coach Ashlee Crowder has two priorities in line: seeking new recruits and molding a new mind-set.
“Another focus will be our mental toughness and how to face pressure head on. We will be focusing on a series of mental toughness books and team activities.”
And of course, they’ll continue to train on the court.
“As far as training in our practices, we will be focusing on our first contact, so serving and serve receive and consistency in our skills. lots of time to break down the skills and lots of time for reps,” Crowder said.
