FORT MYERS, Fla. – As the FGCU volleyball team holds a second-place standing in the Atlantic Sun standings and is in need of one win to clinch a position in the 2014 Atlantic Sun Conference championship, the team will face seventh-ranked Kennesaw State Friday, Nov. 7 and will take on eighth-place USC Upstate Saturday, Nov. 8. The Eagles and Owls will begin at 6:30 p.m., while the match against the Spartans is slated for 5 p.m. Both matches are hosted by the Eagles at Alico Arena.
 
Prior to Saturday's match, four members of the team will be honored for their contributions to the program in a senior day ceremony.
 
THE GREEN AND BLUE
FGCU will begin the weekend with an overall record of 15-9 and a mark of 8-2 in Atlantic Sun play. As winners in 10 of their last 12 matches, the Eagles are looking to protect the nest in the final conference series in Fort Myers.
 
Through 24 contests, the Eagles have maintained an attack percentage of .207 which ranks second in the league. The Eagles lead the conference in overall kills with 1,302 and rank second with 13.4 kills per set.  The Eagles have maintained an average of 12.8 assists per set, 15.6 digs per set have amassed 153.5 blocks on the season.
 
The Eagles' attack continues to be strong from multiple assets as three members have recorded 305 kills or more on the season. Junior Eleonora Kazarian (Tibilisi, Georgia/ College Central Florida) leads the squad with 310 kills at a rate of 3.26 kills per set. Senior Olivia Mesner (Boca Raton, Fla./Spanish River High School) trails closely behind with 309 kills at a rate of 3.19 kills per set, while teammate Jessica Barnes (Winter Haven, Fla./Haines City High School) has added 305 kills with 3.14 kills per set. The trio ranks in the top five hitters in the conference in total kills, while Mesner currently leads the conference with an attack percentage of .362.
 
Senior Gigi Meyer (Gainesville, Fla./Buchholz High School) has dished out 1,118 assists in 24 matches and leads the conference with 11.53 assists per set. Meyer is also ranked 11th in the nation in assists per set and sits at fourth among the nation's setters in total assists.
 
Whitney Masters (Muncie, Ind./ Wapahani High School) anchors the Eagle defense with 4.22 digs per set and 409 total on the year. Masters is ranked second in the conference with her digs per set average.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Eagles split a two-game series last weekend with a 3-2 win over Northern Kentucky and a 3-1 loss to Lipscomb. With the win, Lipscomb clinched a position in the 2014 Atlantic Sun Conference Championship, which is slated for Nov. 20-22 at Alico Arena. FGCU needs one 'W' to earn a spot in the field.
 
As a unit, the Eagles hit .220 on the day, while allowing the home team to successfully attack at a rate of .274.  The Bisons produced 65 kills, compared to the Eagles' 52 but the Green and Blue outpaced LU 60-58 in digs and 9-4 in total blocks.
 
SCOUTING THE OWLS
Kennesaw State approaches the match up with an overall record of 10-14 and is 4-6 in conference play. The Owls have lost six of their last eight match ups including a 3-1 loss to the Eagles at home on Oct. 11.
 
This season, Kennesaw has averaged 12.0 kills per set with an attack percentage of .157. Defensively, the Owls have averaged 15.1 digs per set along with 1.6 blocks per set with 151 blocks on the season.
 
Sophomore Kelly Marcinek leads the Owls with a total of 278 kills on the year and has averaged 3.12 per set, with freshman Anaiah Boyer trailing Marcinek slightly with 214 kills on the year. Freshman Kristi Piedimonte leads the Owls in assists with 805 on the season and 8.66 per set. Defensively, the Owls are led by freshman Katarina Morton with 400 digs on the year and 4.44 digs per set, which tops the conference's individual performers.
 
The Eagles previously defeated the Owls 3-1 at Kennesaw in the first half of conference action this season. The Green and Blue saw 18 kills from Mesner along with 56 assists from Meyer on the match. As a unit, the Eagles hit .228 percent with 62 kills, 69 digs and 12 total blocks.
 
SCOUTING THE SPARTANS
USC travels to SWFL with a record of 10-16 overall and 1-9 in conference. The Spartans currently stand in eighth-place in the league and will face the Stetson Hatters before matching up with the Eagles on Saturday.
 
This season the Spartans have averaged 11.6 kills per set with an attack percentage of .140. Defensively, the Spartans have produced a total of 119 blocks on the year and lead the conference with 16.6 digs per set.
 
Junior Kayla Eversgerd leads the team with 2.92 kills per set with 269 on the year. Junior Kayla McAvoy sits just behind with 2.48 kills per set and 248 on the year. Junior Lexi Gober leads the conference with 38 service aces and paces the team in assists with 8.52 per set and 878 on the year.
 
This season, the Eagles defeated the Spartans 3-0 in South Carolina in the first round of conference play. The Green and Blue saw 14 kills from Mesner leading the Eagles assisted by Meyer with 40 assists on the match.  As a unit, the team hit a season-high .402 percent with 42 kills, 48 digs and 14 total blocks. In the second meeting of the two teams, the Eagles will look to keep their second-ranked standing in conference before the final weekend of league action.
 
FOLLOW LIVE
Fans can view both contest live and free of charge on ASun.TV, while live stats for will be available via StatBroadcast.
 
UP NEXT
After the weekend challenge, the Eagles will continue Atlantic Sun action with one final matchup at Alico Arena.  The Green and Blue will host Kennesaw State and USC Upstate Friday, Nov. 7 and Saturday, Nov. 8. Prior to Saturday's contest, the team's four seniors will be honored for their contributions to the program.
 
PRESEASON PREDICTIONS
After tying Stetson at fourth in the standings last season, the Eagles were selected to finish third among the league's teams in this year's preseason coaches' poll. The Eagles received 45 points in the poll to sit behind only Lipscomb and Jacksonville.  Stetson picked up 27 points and tied for sixth in the poll. After the first half of the season, the predictions have changed slightly as Lipscomb and the Eagles maintain the top two positions, while NKU, Stetson and Jacksonville round out the top five.
 
RPI
FGCU has moved up 38 positions in the RPI in the last three weeks and currently stands at 66.  The Eagles hold the second-highest RPI rating in the Atlantic Sun Conference, behind only Lipscomb. Here is a breakdown of the Green and Blue's opponents and their positions in the latest RPI.
 
Ohio State 22
Lipscomb 38
Miami 39
Seton Hall 63
FGCU 66
UT Arlington 80
UMKC 86
Northern Kentucky 94
Auburn 101
FAU 122
Southern Illinois 139
Stetson 174
Florida A&M 184
Jacksonville 185
Houston Baptist 199
North Florida 206
Kennesaw State 239
Texas Southern 259
USC Upstate 260
Alabama State 281
Bethune Cookman 309
 
For up-to-the minute information and a behind-the-scenes look at the FGCU volleyball program, follow on Twitter at @FGCU_VB, on Facebook at /FGCUVolleyball and on Instagram at @FGCU_VB.
 
Head coach Matt Botsford is in his first year at the helm of the FGCU volleyball program. Prior to his time in Southwest Florida, Botsford held successful stints as an assistant at Notre Dame, Miami, IUIPI, Indianapolis and most recently Colorado State. Botsford is a former professional volleyball player and is a 1998 graduate of Tri-State University, where he earned a degree in Social Studies Education.  He earned a master's degree in Business Administration from the University of Indianapolis.