FORT MYERS, Fla. – FGCU volleyball dropped the opening set but bounced back, claiming the next three in a 3-1 (19-25, 25-20, 25-21, 25-18) victory over Stetson Saturday (Oct. 24). The Eagles have now won eight in a row, the fifth longest winning streak since 2007, improving to 18-7 overall and 7-1 in the Atlantic Sun to maintain first place. The Hatters meanwhile fell to 9-13 overall and 3-5 in conference action.
"To be honest, I don't know if we deserved to go into the break split," said head coach
Matt Botsford. "We were certainly better at the end of the second set, but overall Stetson played better for a longer duration. We made some adjustments but it wasn't close to the level we need to be playing. The fourth set started off great because we were doing the things that were missing earlier in the match. We still got pretty careless in serve receive and we have to be careful playing that way, but they're motivated to play at a higher level. Stetson has been on a good roll lately and they did a good job pressuring us tonight."
Tonight's match was also part of Eagle's Don't Fight Alone. The annual Dig Pink match for FGCU volleyball raised more than $500 for the Side-Out Foundation and the fight against breast cancer.
"The community's response to this year's campaign has been very generous," said Assistant Athletic Director for Marketing and Sales
Denise Da Silveira. "We hope to top $2,000 donated to various cancer organizations this year."
Amanda Carroll (Albuquerque, N.M./Sandia High School) and
Eleonora Kazarian (Tibilisi, Georgia/College of Central Florida) paced the Eagles with 14 and 12 kills, respectively. They were joined by eight kills from
Leigh Pudwill (Lino Lakes, Minn./Centennial High School/Northern Iowa) and seven from
Lauren Tutwiler (Louisville, Ky./Assumption High School). Pudwill also aided defensively with one block while Tutwiler compiled three blocks.
Maggie Rick (Alpharetta, Ga./Blessed Trinity Catholic High School) recorded 39 assists in the match along with 12 digs while
Vanessa Benke (Toledo, Brazil/College of Central Florida) led the floor defense with 21 digs.
The night began with Stetson winning the first set 25-19 before the Eagles evened up the match with a 25-20 second set win. Looking to gain control of the match, the Green and Blue pulled away late in the third set, winning 25-21 and taking a 2-1 lead on the night. FGCU used its strongest performance of the match to claim the fourth set 25-18 and the match, 3-1.
Despite earning three of the first four points of the match, the Eagles fell behind 10-7 behind a 5-2 run from the visiting Hatters. Kazarian ended the run with a kill, only for Stetson to immediately earn side out. FGCU then used two attack errors and a
Marlene Moeller (Lüdinghausen, Germany/Pascal Gymnasium) kill to climb back to within 13-12. The deficit would remain one thanks to a Rick kill and a service error from the Hatters. With the score 15-14, the visitors forced FGCU to call timeout after a pair of kills, pushing the score line to 18-14. Carroll and Kazarian picked up kills out of the timeout but the Eagles were unable to close the gap any further, falling 25-19 to open the match. Kazarian led the way for FGCU with five kills. As a team, the Eagles hit .219 but could not slow down the Hatters, who hit .323 to open the match.
The second set remained close through the early stages until Stetson picked up two consecutive points, taking a 15-13 lead. FGCU trailed 18-15 before kills from Moeller and Pudwill pulled the Green and Blue to within 18-17. After a Stetson error, another kill from Pudwill and an ace from Benke tied the set at 19. A kill from Rick later tied the set at 20 and also allowed the freshman to step to the service line and help the Eagles finish off the set. Tutwiler and Pudwill recorded kills around a Rick ace as the Eagles tied up the match with a 25-20 victory. Pudwill, Tutwiler and Carroll each recorded three kills, while the defense stepped up, holding the Hatters to a .116 hitting percentage. Benke dug out eight Hatter attacks to lead the defensive efforts.
FGCU again played from behind in the third set, trailing by two throughout the early stages. Down 9-7, Carroll recorded three of the next four points of the game as the Eagles tied the third set at 10. Kazarian gave FGCU its first lead with a kill making the score 13-12 and Pudwill followed with a pair of successful attacks, giving FGCU a 15-12 advantage. The visitors were quick to respond however, tying the set at 15 and again at 20. It was Kazarian once more that gave FGCU a slight advantage at 21-20, but this time it was for good. Three attack errors from the Hatters gave FGCU set point, allowing Kazarian to finish off the set with her fourth kill of the game. The Green and Blue won 25-21 behind five kills from Carroll along with Kazarian's offensive output. Defensively, the Eagles set the tone holding the Hatters to a .024 attack percentage.
The Eagles carried their momentum into the fourth set, taking an 8-2 advantage behind kills from Carroll and Pudwill along with a Carroll ace and a block from Moeller and Kazarian. The run was capped by a Kazarian ace, which forced Stetson to call timeout with FGCU in front 9-2. Stetson cut into the Eagle lead, getting as close as 10-8 before a service error gave FGCU side out. Carroll played a role in the three points following the error, with two kills and a block assisted by Tutwiler, who later recorded a kill extending FGCU's lead to 15-9. An ace from Rick capped a 4-0 run as the Eagles took an 18-9 lead. FGCU closed out the match thanks to multiple Hatter errors along with kills from Moeller and Carroll and an ace from Pudwill. Another five kills from Carroll guided the Eagles to a 25-18 victory in the fourth set, along with four aces from FGCU. Kazarian, Rick, Carroll and Pudwill all picked up service aces in the fourth set victory.
UP NEXTThe Eagles remain at home looking improve upon its eight match winning streak. The Green and Blue welcome UNF and Jacksonville to Alico Arena on Halloween weekend. Action begins Oct. 30 with a match against UNF, with first serve scheduled for 7 p.m. The finale is scheduled for Oct. 31 against Jacksonville, with first serve at 6 p.m.
FOLLOW ALONG 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.
COACH BOTSFORD Head coach
Matt Botsford is in his second year at the helm of the FGCU volleyball program and his teams have combined for an overall 37-18 (.673) record, including an 18-4 (.818) mark in A-Sun play. In his inaugural season, the Eagles finished with a record of 19-11 with a second-place finish in the A-Sun. Botsford's team also had five players recognized as All-Conference honorees, to set a new program high. Prior to his time in Southwest Florida, Botsford held successful stints as an assistant at Notre Dame, Miami, IUPUI, 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.
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