DAVIE, Florida – The Bentley volleyball team concluded its season-opening trip to Florida with a couple of four-set losses against Eckerd and Nova Southeastern Saturday evening.

Eckerd 3, Bentley 1 (25-21, 28-26, 25-12, 25-21)

Ingrid Murphy had a team-high 12 kills for the Falcons, while Natalie Thom (21) and Lauren Hallis (18) combined for 39 assists.

After beginning the season with a couple of 3-0 wins Friday, the Falcons began Saturday by taking the first set. Bentley cruised to a 14-6, and staved off a comeback bid by the Tritons to take the opening frame, 25-21.

Bentley opened the second set with a 6-2 run. Maddy Kelley put away a couple of kills during that stretch, and Eckerd committed three attack errors.

 The Tritons got within a point, 8-7, but a kill by Caitlin Wunder sparked a 6-0 run for the Falcons. Wunder had a trio of kills during the run, and Murphy added two more.

However, the Tritons weren't going down quietly in the second set, and they tied the score, 22-22. An error by Eckard gave the Falcons a one-point edge, but the Tritons were on the verge of winning the set when they took a 24-23 lead.

A kill by Wunder kept Bentley in it, and Ellie Wheeler immediately followed with a kill of her own. The teams exchanged points before the Tritons closed out the set with a 3-0 run for a score of 28-26. It was just the momentum Eckerd needed to win the next two sets.

Nova Southeastern 3, Bentley 1 (25-23, 23-25, 25-20, 25-22)

Ellie Wheeler led the Falcons' offense with 16 kills, but the Falcons came up on the short end of a match where three sets were decided by no more than three points.

The opening set the tone for the tightly contested match, as neither team led by more than three points until the Sharks claimed a 21-17 lead. From there, however, Bentley scored three unanswered points thanks to a kill by Caitlin Wunder, an ace by Natalie Tom, and a kill by Wheeler.

Nova Southeastern scored the next two points, however, and it held on to win the set.

Early in the second set the Falcons used a 4-0 run to claim a 5-2 lead. A little later, three consecutive Sharks errors allowed Bentley to hold a 9-5 lead. Bentley was up, 14-9, when the Sharks went on a 4-0 run to cut their deficit to one point. The teams went back-and-forth until a kill by Elizabeth Blinn gave the Falcons some breathing room, 18-15.

The Sharks kept battling to cut Bentley's lead to 23-22, but a kill from Wheeler and then one by Blinn ended the set in favor of the Falcons. It was their only set win.

Bentley makes its 2023 home debut in the Sandy Hoffman Memorial, Sept. 8-9.