WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Fourth-seeded Florida Memorial rallied from a two-sets-to-one deficit for the second straight day and earned its first Sun Conference Volleyball Tournament championship with a five-set victory (25-23, 14-25, 17-25, 25-18, 15-10) over second-seeded Coastal Georgia in the Sun tourney’s title match at Keiser’s Massimino Court on Saturday.
 
The Lions (22-10, 11-5), under first-year head coach Marrita Crockett-Moulton, not only captured their first Sun Conference volleyball title but also Florida Memorial’s first Sun championship in any sport since the Lions’ men’s soccer team won the 2012 Sun tourney as the No. 7 seed in an eight-team field.
 
Saturday’s match followed the same pattern for the Lions as their semifinal victory over No. 1 seed and host Keiser on Friday night. The Lions won the opening set, dropped the next two to put their backs against the wall, and then rallied to win both the fourth and fifth sets and claim victory.
 
The Lions were led by sophomore outside hitter Rachele Mancinelli, who topped the team with 16 kills, 12 digs, two blocks and a pair of service aces.  Junior middle blocker Daphinie Correa was next in line on the Lions’ offensive attack with 12 kills, five blocks and three service aces. Junior libero Keisha Santana led FMU’s defensive effort with a match-high 34 digs, while junior setter Francheska Rivera ran the offense with 30 assists and added 13 digs.
 
Coastal Georgia senior outside hitter Addie Pedraza led the Mariners (20-9, 12-4) with 11 kills and fellow senior outside hitter Sam Kepler added 10. The Sun Conference Libero of the Year senior Yorelis Rios Gonzalez led Coastal Georgia with 20 digs.
 
Florida Memorial now advances to the NAIA Opening Round portion of the NAIA Volleyball Championship Tournament which will be played on Saturday, Nov. 23. The Lions will find out who their opponent is and where they will play when the NAIA announces the tournament field on Monday. This will mark the Lions’ first trip to the NAIA Opening Round.