PENSACOLA, Fla. - The Argonauts (5-3) showed grit and saw multiple freshmen take on big roles in the action on Saturday at UWF Field House, the final day of the Outback Invitational, but could not overcome stiff challenges from Florida Tech and Northwest Missouri State, falling in five sets in each match.
 
FLORIDA TECH 3, WEST FLORIDA 2 (23-25, 22-25, 25-22, 25-19, 15-12)
 
After grinding out wins in the opening two sets, UWF fell victim to the reverse sweep to a Panthers squad with nothing to lose in its final match of the weekend. Florida Tech (5-3) responded every time the Argos made a push, outhitting the hosts by .026 despite committing eight more errors. All of the Panthers' kills came from six players, four of whom had double-digit kills and had a minimum hitting percentage of .250.
 
It was no surprise who the top two hitters were for the Argos, as Jenna Zydlo led the team in percentage with .385 on 12 kills and Damyah Joyner in kills with 16 on a .375 output. Third on the list was Magdalena Vongkasemsiri, as the freshman middle received the most playing time as an Argonaut on Saturday. She stepped in and made an immediate impact, scoring 13 kills with a .344 percentage and three block assists. 
 
Gabi Moulton racked up 48 assists and 13 digs for her seventh double-double in Blue and Green. Moulton, Taylor Teaman (17), Camryn Brooks (15) and Meg Brackhan (11) all had double-digit digs. Besides errors, digs was the only category UWF led in, scooping 76 digs to the Panthers' 73. 
 
NORTHWEST MISSOURI STATE 3, WEST FLORIDA 2 (25-19, 16-25, 25-16, 29-31, 16-14)
 
The Argos dropped a heartbreaker to the Bearcats (4-4) in an emotional final match of the Outback Invitational in front of a raucous Field House. 
 
UWF actually led in points won, kills, assists and digs in this all-time matchup, but the visitors won the hitting percentage battle and forced 12 more errors out of the hosts than they committed while also earning one more ace and ace and block than the Argos. Just seven Bearcats provided all the scoring compared to 11 players scoring in some way for UWF.
 
After dropping Set 1, nine points into the second, Joyner went down with an injury that would keep her out for the remainder of the contest. Kumara Flanagain entered in her stead and did yeoman's work, leading the squad with a .474 attack percentage with 10 kills on 19 attempts. Caiden Largent led the Argos with 14 kills. Emily Breazeale earned the first double-double of her career with 24 digs and 13 kills. Zydlo and Vongkasemsiri both hit .219 with 12 and 13 kills, respectively, with the former also assisting three blocks and earning a spot on the All-Tournament Team. Vongkasemsiri earned her first college start after impressing in the Florida Tech match, and at one point scored three straight kills for set points at 24, 25 and 26 before the set went all the way to 31. Moulton added another double-double to her account, racking up 58 assists with 10 digs to also place on the All-Tournament Team. She and Breazeale each assisted two blocks. Camryn Brooks added 15 scoops. 
 
The galvanizing force in the second frame on the team, besides seeing Joyner go down, was a libero change from Taylor Teaman to fifth-year veteran DS Meg Brackhan, who stepped up and headed the Argo defense with 31 digs. Backup setter Olivia Kelly also saw her first extended playing time, and she and Brackhan registered four assists and two aces each. Kelly served her aces in the final two sets, with the first giving her team another set point at 28-27. The sealing point that sent the match to the final set came from Delaney Hanowell, as the freshman sent a block to the floor following a Bearcat service error, her second solo block and third overall in the contest.
 
The battle-tested Argos head to the campus of Valdosta State next weekend for two additional challenges in South Region play. UWF plays Florida Southern, currently receiving votes in the AVCA coaches poll, on Friday afternoon before squaring off with Tampa, the top team in the land, on Saturday. First serve for the Argos against the FSC Mocs is set for 3:30 pm ET/2:30 pm CT on Sept. 20.  
 
For more information, please visit GoArgos.com or follow the program at @UWFVolleyball on Facebook, X and Instagram.

2024 Outback Invitational All-Tournament Team
MH Abby Brunssen (Northwest Missouri State)
OH Payton Kirchhoefer (Northwest Missouri State)
RS Gabby Saye (Wingate)
DS/L Maddie Hoffman (Wingate)
S Gabi Moulton (UWF)
MB Jenna Zydlo (UWF)
OH Cordelia Kearns (Florida Tech)
MB/OH Ariyonna Weaver (Spring Hill)