FORT MYERS, Fla. — With nine wins in Atlantic Sun Conference action, the FGCU volleyball team clinched a position in the 2014 Atlantic Sun Conference Championship Friday night at Alico Arena.  The Eagles defeated Kennesaw State 3-0 (25-20, 25-18, 25-21) to pick up their 11th win in 13 matches and earn their fourth trip to the conference tournament in four years of eligibility.
 
"In terms of conference play, from the first serve, until the end, that was the most consistent performance we've had," said head coach Matt Botsford of the team's milestone victory. "We had very few breakdowns, we saw very few opponent runs. I was really pleased. Tonight was just what we needed."
 
The Eagles hit .204 on the night, while holding their opposition to an attack percentage of just .088. FGCU's passing game was stellar as the team compiled 37 assists on 37 kills through the three-set affair.  Defensively, the team recorded 47 digs and 11 total blocks, with the Owls also amassing 11 blocks with 43 digs.
 
Individually, junior Eleonora Kazarian (Tibilisi, Georgia/College of Central Florida) and senior Olivia Mesner (Boca Raton, Spanish River High School) paired to lead the Eagle offense. Each hitter produced 12 kills and an attack percentage over .345. Gigi Meyer (Gainesville, Fla./Buchholz High School) facilitated the attack with 35 of the team's 37 assists.
 
Rookie Courtney Stephens (Winter Park, Fla./Winter Park High School) led the defense with 13 digs on the night, with Kazarian producing her team-best 10th double-double of the season with 11 digs. Meyer and freshman Lauren Tutwiler (Louisville, Ky./Assumption High School) led the team's blocking effort, each with five total.
 
With Stephens behind the line, the Eagles opened the match with four-straight points to take control of the set. The team quickly moved the lead to 10-5 and forced a Kennesaw timeout before using another four-point streak to increase the advantage to 18-10.  Backed by three Eagle attack errors, the Owls cut the deficit to 19-14 but the team was unable to ever get closer than four points. A KSU error at set point allowed the Eagles to abscond with a 25-20 win to take a 1-0 lead in the match.
 
The second set began with a long rally that ended in favor of the Eagles with a Kazarian kill. After trading points, the Owls took a 5-4 lead before the Eagles ignited a spark to reclaim control. The Green and Blue fired off six-straight points to take a 10-5 lead and force a KSU timeout. The run featured four kills from senior Jessica Barnes (Winter Haven, Fla./Haines City High School) and an ace from senior libero Whitney Masters (Muncie, Ind./Wapahani High School).
 
After hailing for a timeout, the Owls sparked a comeback that evened the set at 12 and 13 points but the home team used kills from Kazarian and Mesner to exonerate the tie and take back the advantage at 17-14. A KSU error and back-to-back kills from Mesner pushed the Green and Blue ahead 20-14 to give the team a lead it would not relinquish. FGCU held onto the advantage to take a 25-18 win and went ahead 2-0 in the match before the break.
 
The third set saw eight tie scores and two lead changes as the Owls battled to avoid the sweep. After matching scores at 9, 10, 11, 14, 15 and 16 points, the Eagles took a three-point lead on a KSU error and consecutive aces from Meyer.  FGCU maintained a two-point lead until the end of the set when back-to-back kills from Mesner sealed a win at 25-21.
 
The straight-set victory moved the Eagles to 9-2 in Atlantic Sun Conference action so that the team maintains a second-place standing, behind only Lipscomb University.
 
The Eagles wrap up the home portion of the Atlantic Sun Conference slate Saturday, Nov. 8 with a 5 p.m. matchup against USC Upstate. Prior to the tilt, the team will honor seniors Barnes, Masters, Mesner and Meyer for their contributions to the program.
 
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.