No. 20 UWF Volleyball Defeats Henderson State, 3-1, to Advance to GSC Semifinals

Chelsea Wilhoite leads UWF with 18 kills and 25 assists

PENSACOLA, Fla. – The No. 20 University of West Florida volleyball team (26-6) advanced to the Gulf South Conference (GSC) tournament semifinals with a 25-21, 22-25, 25-18, 25-13 win over Henderson State tonight at the UWF Field House. Chelsea Wilhoite led the Argos with 18 kills and 25 digs for the night. Setter Tricia Tirabassi added 34 assists, 17 digs and three kills.

In game one, UWF grabbed an early four point lead when an attack error by Robin Law of Henderson State gave the Argos the 6-2 lead. Henderson State battled back and a Law kill put Henderson State up 10-7. Back to back kills by senior Katie Johnson (Tallahassee) gave UWF back the lead, 12-11. A kill by setter Molly Pearce (Tallahassee) put UWF up 19-17. Back to back kills by Johnson and senior Kara Gonzalez (St. Augustine) made the score 23-21, UWF. An attack error by Henderson State’s Shawana Watkins gave UWF the set, 25-21. The Argos outhit Henderson State, .216 to .068 for set.

Henderson State took set two as errors by UWF proved costly. A kill by Chelsea Wilhoite (Jacksonville) gave UWF the 8-3 lead. Four UWF attack errors in a row gave Henderson State the lead, 18-17. Two attack errors by Argo Jamie Nichols (Crawfordville) and a Law kill gave Henderson State a three point lead, 22-19. Another Law kill gave Henderson State set two, 25-22. For the set, Henderson State hit .276 and held UWF to a .049 hitting percentage.

A kill by sophomore Chandler Carney (Indianapolis, Ind.) put UWF up 7-5 early in set three. Henderson State tied the set at 9-9 on an attack error by Carney. Back to back Johnson kills gave UWF the lead, 12-11. A kill by setter Tricia Tirabassi (Kenosha, Wis.) gave the Argos the lead, 17-14. Three straight attack errors by Henderson State put UWF up 23-16. A kill by Johnson gave UWF set three, 25-18.

UWF dominated the final set. Back to back kills by Wilhoite gave UWF a seven point lead, 14-7. Four straight Argo kills put UWF up, 18-8. UWF went up 20-9 on kills by Nichols and Gonzalez. A Gonzalez ace made the score 22-10, UWF. A Wilhoite kill gave UWF the set, 25-13. UWF hit .459 for the set.

Earlier today, North Alabama defeated Christian Brothers, 3-2, and Arkansas Tech defeated West Alabama, 3-0. North Alabama is East No. 2 seed, Arkansas Tech won the West Division title. Harding defeated Valdosta State, 3-0, in the 5 p.m. match today. Harding is the West No. 2 seed.

The GSC Tournament concludes tomorrow with three matches. North Alabama will play Arkansas Tech in the 12 p.m. semifinals match. Harding will face West Florida in the 2:30 semifinals match. The two winners will face each other in the championship match set for 7:30 p.m. The winner of the tournament will receive the GSC automatic berth into the NCAA Championships. All matches will be played in the UWF Field House. Live video streaming of all tournament matches will be available on GoArgos.com.

For information on all UWF Athletics, visit www.GoArgos.com.