Coming off a 3-0 sweep of Winthrop Friday night, the UNC Wilmington volleyball squad faced off against Jacksonville in game two of the round-robin UNCW Courtyard by Marriott Classic on Saturday.

The Seahawks rode the momentum from the previous night’s win to a 3-1 match victory, but not before Jacksonville could put the reigning CAA champions to the test.

The day’s marquee matchup saw the Dolphins (2-0 on the season) continue the gritty play that earned them wins over Davidson College and Winthrop earlier in the event.

They kept things close early, taking several leads over the course of the first two sets. UNCW fought the Dolphins off, though, escaping with 25-23 and 25-20 wins, respectively.

Jacksonville would not be denied in the third set. The Dolphins took advantage of the Seahawks, who were slow to get above the net on defense, and churned out a 25-20 set win after taking a 10-5 lead, cutting UNCW’s advantage to 2-1.

Led by senior Nicole Lott and sophomore Maddy Kline on offense, the Seahawks came out with an explosive start to the fourth and final set. A 13-0 run was too much for the Dolphins to handle as the Seahawks won 25-10, taking the game and the match while improving to 2-0 on the season.

“I think this was a good win over a really good Jacksonville team,” said UNCW coach Amy Bambanek. “They have a lot of experience on their team … They were a tough opponent, very different from the one we played in Winthrop, and I was really happy to see some of the in-game adjustments our team was able to make tonight.”

Lott and Kline both notched double-double performances. Lott finished with 16 kills to go along with 13 digs. Kline led UNCW in digs with 16 and added 13 kills in the process.

“It was definitely really competitive tonight,” Lott said. “It was more difficult for us to pull out a win, but I think losing that third set gave us a kick in the butt and made us turn it on in the fourth set. I was really proud of how we responded.”

Bambenek said she told the team they needed to get off to a faster start in the fourth — something the Seahawks had failed to do up to that point in any set. Jacksonville took the first points in sets 1-3.

“She told us to start fast,” Lott said. “It was as simple as that. We took that to heart and went out there and played fearless.”

Sydney Brock, in her junior season for the Seahawks, returned Friday against Winthrop after sitting out all of 2015 with a knee injury. She appeared again Saturday and recorded 7 kills, 1 dig, and 3 blocks.

“She is one of the hardest workers on the team,” Bambeneck said of Brock. “She’s someone that’s always available for her setter … Even though she’s undersized, her work ethic and her smarts about the game really elevate her above her competition.”

UNCW will go for the Courtyard by Marriott Classic championship tomorrow at noon when they take on Davidson.