By: Holly Weber, TTU Sports Information Coordinator

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. –Another day at the Tennessee Volleyball Invitational provided the Tennessee Tech volleyball team (0-5, 0-0 OVC) with an opportunity for growth as they competed against North Florida (3-1) on Friday. The Ospreys triumphed over the young Golden Eagles, with winning set scores of 25-17, 25-21, and 25-10.

"We have a lot of young kids," said head coach Dave Zelenock. "We are playing a lot of freshman and got five of them on the floor today. We are trying to get them a lot of experience so hopefully they will be more comfortable come time for conference matches."

Cody Dodd opened match play against North Florida with a kill assisted by Susan Jeziorowski. From there, Tech went on a 5-1 run to pull ahead 6-1. The Ospreys made up their deficit and pulled within one point of the Golden Eagles at 7-6, and from there the two teams continued to battle keeping the score within three points of one another. North Florida tied the match at 10-10 and then took their first lead of the game after going on a 5-1 streak to lead 15-11. The Ospreys held a strong offense and extended their lead to 19-13, before cruising to a first set triumph over the Golden Eagles 25-17.

"I don't think our team played to our full potential," commented Golden Eagle Susan Jeziorowski. "We have a lot of new players this year, and we need to step it up if we want to be successful like we were last year."

North Florida took the early lead in the second set, opening with a score of 9-4 over Tech. The Golden Eagles fought to pull back within three points of the Ospreys at 11-8, however, North Florida continued to capitalize and extended their lead to 20-13. Tech persisted and pulled within three points, 19-22, off of three straight kills from Shaneice James, Kellie Williams, and Dodd, however, North Florida held on and took the second set 25-21.

The Ospreys came out strong in the third set opening with a 9-1 lead over the Golden Eagles. North Florida stayed tough offensively and pulled away from Tech, 16-6, and remained dominant to end the third set and the match 25-10.

"Susan is a great leader," commented Zelenock. "The team plays for her really well on the court, and things will only get better as her consistency and decision making get better. She has been a really great leader on the court, and with only being a freshman, that's really impressive."

Jeziorowski led the Golden Eagles with 28 assists and six digs, while teammate Dodd tallied 12 kills and four blocks. The Ospreys were led by Katarina Raicevic who totaled 14 kills and 3 blocks.

Tech will close out tournament play on Saturday when they take on the UNC-Greensboro Spartans in an 11:30 a.m. contest at the Tennessee Volleyball Invitational.