FORT MYERS, Fla. – No. 3 USC hit .538 as a team Friday as the Trojans defeated the Eagles, 3-0 (25-11, 25-11, 25-6), in front of an Alico Arena FGCU Volleyball Division I record crowd of 1,896 fans on day one of the FGCU Homewood Suites Invitational. Five USC players registered eight or more kills in the sweep.

Alex Jupiter led the Trojans with 11 kills, while Kirby Burnham and Katie Fuller added nine kills each for USC (2-2). Kendall Bateman ran the Trojan offense and finished with 38 assists and Natalie Hagglund recorded 14 digs.

FGCU (2-2) stumbled out of the gate and finished with a .066 hitting percentage in the match. Junior Brittany Muse (Arcadia, Fla./DeSoto County HS) tallied a team-high six kills while setter Gigi Meyer (Gainesville, Fla./Buchholz HS) had 13 assists for the Green and Blue.

Florida Gulf Coast hosts UCF Saturday afternoon at 1:30 p.m. before closing out the tournament with a matchup with Furman at 7 p.m.

Live stats for day two of the of the FGCU Homewood Suites Volleyball Invitational will be available at FGCUAthletics.com.

Tickets for the 2011 Homewood Suites Volleyball Invitational can be purchased through the FGCU Ticket Office in Alico Arena either in person or by phone at (239) 590-7145. Tickets are also available at www.FGCUathletics.com/tickets. All Tournament passes, valid for all games during the tournament, will be $10 for adults and $5 for youth (ages 3-18). Admission for FGCU faculty, staff, and students is free.

Tournament Schedule:
Saturday, September 3rd

11:30 a.m. – Furman (2-2) vs. No. 3 USC (2-2)

1:30 p.m. – UCF (4-1) vs. FGCU (2-2)

7:00 p.m. – Furman (2-2) vs. FGCU (2-2)