FORT MYERS, Fla. – Following a 3-0 start to the 2015 season, FGCU volleyball turns its attention to the USF Classic, set to begin Friday, Sept. 4. The Eagles begin the weekend against SEC-foe Missouri on Friday at 4:30 p.m. Play continues in Tampa against the hosts USF Sept. 5 at 1 p.m. before action concludes at 5 p.m. against Arkansas State.

Live stats will be made available through USF's website and can be accessed here.

THE GREEN AND BLUE

The Eagles enter the USF Classic 3-0 following wins over New Orleans, Fordham and Presbyterian. The 3-0 record marks the best start in Division I history. FGCU did not drop a single set at the 2015 Hilton Garden Inn/Homewood Suites Classic to claim the tournament championship.

Senior Eleonora Kazarian (Tibilisi, Georgia/College of Central Florida) and freshman Amanda Carroll (Albuquerque, N.M./Sandia High School) were named to the All-Tournament Team, with Kazarian earning MVP honors. Carroll began her FGCU career by posting double-digit kills in each of her first three matches wearing Green and Blue, compiling a team-leading 38 kills and an A-Sun leading 4.22 kills per set. Meanwhile Kazarian posted 34 kills, adding a pair of service aces and 15 blocks. Her 1.67 blocks per set leads the conference.

Freshmen Elisa Anne Aldrich (Charleston, S.C./Wando High School) and Maggie Rick (Alpharetta, Ga./Blessed Trinity Catholic High School) also made an impact in their first appearances as Eagles. Rick recorded 92 assists in her first three matches and currently sits second in the A-Sun with 11.5 assists per set. Aldrich accumulated 10 blocks to bolster the FGCU defense. Her 1.25 blocks per set trails only Kazarian in the A-Sun.

Making her first appearance as a libero, senior Vanessa Benke (Toledo, Brazil/College of Central Florida) gathered 46 digs and sits second in the conference with 5.11 digs per set.

As a team, the Eagles hit .308 to open the 2015 season. The Green and Blue started the year on a high note offensively, hitting over .400 in three of the nine sets played. In the season-opening set, The Eagles hit .455 as a unit and carried that performance into the second match of the year, hitting .577 and .571 during the first two sets of that match.

Defensively, FGCU limited opponents to hitting percentages of less than .200. The Eagles held New Orleans to a .106 attack percentage to open the year and held Presyterian to a .095 attack percentage to end the weekend. Fordham hit .173 against FGCU and the Eagle defense stifled the Rams in the final set, forcing 22 errors for a -.136 hitting percentage.

MISSOURI

The Tigers also enter the USF Classic with a 3-0 record. Missouri defeated North Dakota State, Winthrop and North Texas, dropping only two sets all weekend at the Tiger Invitational. Led by junior Carly Kan, the Tigers ended their home tournament with a .348 attack percentage. Kan reached the 50 kill mark through the first three matches, hitting .430 to open 2015. Missouri features three other players with more than 20 kills in Reagan Peltier (26 kills), Kira Larson (24 kills) and Alyssa Munlyn (23 kills).

Courtney Eckenrode and Ali Kreklow lead the team in assists. Eckenrode recorded 60 assists in the first three matches while Krelow has added 57 assists.
Defensively, Munlyn and Julia Towler have compiled 16 and 10 blocks, respectively. As a team, the Tigers have limited opponents to a .186 hitting percentage. Alexa Ethridge leads the team with 34 digs with Kan adding 31 digs.                                        

Friday will be the first meeting between the two programs.

USF

The host Bulls enter the weekend 2-1. USF won its season opener 3-0 over Alabama A&M on Friday, Aug. 28 before taking down UNF Saturday, Aug. 29 in straight sets. The Bulls' lone loss was to Florida International to close out the opening weekend. 

Dakota Hampton and Alexus Heidelberg recorded 30 and 27 kills respectively to lead USF, while Elyse Panick added 17 kills to open the 2015 season. Three other USF players have 10-plus kills to their name as Clara Payne (14 kills), Jodi Holland (13 kills) and Molly Burkhardt (11) kills will look to add depth to the USF attack. As a team the Bulls achieved a .253 hitting percentage and limited their opponents to a .176 hitting percentage.

Burkhardt accumulated 53 assists to lead USF at the Panther Challenge. Alex Mendoza added 27 assists.

Defensively, the Bulls relied on Panick and Joli Holland at the Panther Challenge. Both Panick and Holland recorded seven blocks. Heidelberg added six blocks to help the Bulls defense. USF has five players with 10 or more digs on the year. Wylie Devlin leads the team with 43 digs and Hampton added 30. Meanwhile, Burkhardt compiled 24 digs and Nikki Koval and Panick recorded 14 digs and 11 digs respectively.

FGCU holds a 2-3 record against USF since the teams first met in 2009. The Bulls came away with a 3-1 win that year but the Eagles rattled off back-to-back straight-set wins in 2010 and 2011. USF has won the previous two meetings, both 3-1. In the latest meeting in 2013, FGCU took the first set 25-19, but dropped the next three sets 18-25, 20-25 and 12-25. Marlene Moeller (Lüdinghausen, Germany/Pascal Gymnasium) is the only Eagle to have appeared against USF.

ARKANSAS STATE

The Red Wolves enter the weekend with three straight set wins to open the year. Arkansas State beat Southeast Missouri State, Kansas City and Saint Louis to begin the year 3-0. The Red Wolves feature a balanced attack, with three players with 30 or more kills. Led by Drew Jones' 37 kills, Arkansas State also features Darby Graff (34 kills) and Carlisa May (30 kills). May was named the Sun Belt's Student-Athlete of the Week. As a team, the Red Wolves finished the weekend with a .305 hitting percentage. Mallory Warrington surpassed 100 kills after the first weekend of action. Through nine sets, Warrington recorded 108 assists to lead the team.

Markie Schaedig led the team with 55 digs en route to a Sun Belt Student-Athlete of the Week Award. Schaedig registered 20 digs in each of the final two matches for A-State. In addition to Schaedig, Warrington (31 digs), Hannah Robey (21 digs) and Drew Jones (15 digs) all have 10 or more digs on the year. Kelsey Reis tallied 12 blocks to lead a defense that limited opponents to a .169 attack percentage. Jones tacked on seven blocks to sit second on the team.

Saturday will be the first meeting between Arkansas State and FGCU.

UP NEXT

Following the weekend in Tampa, the Eagles head north to Hempstead, N.Y. for the Hofstra/ASICS Invitational. FGCU will face Hartford Friday, Sept. 11 to open the weekend. On Saturday, Sept. 12, the Eagles meet Princeton and Hofstra.

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 concluded his first year at the helm of the FGCU volleyball program with a record of 19-11 with a second-place finish in Atlantic Sun Conference play. Botsford's team also had five players recognized as All-Conference winner 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.

SUPPORT THE CAUSE

FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.