Teams: FGCU (21-3, 7-1), North Florida (15-10, 5-3), Jacksonville (6-15, 2-6),
Coaches: Matt Botsford: (3rd season @ FGCU – 61-25; same overall) | Steve Loeswick: (5th season @ North Florida – 81-71; same overall) | Julie Darty: (3rd season @ Jacksonville – 37-46; same overall)
Match 1: FGCU vs. North Florida: Friday, Oct. 28 | 7 PM | UNF Arena
Links: Live Stats | Watch
Match 2: FGCU vs. Jacksonville: Saturday, Oct. 29 | 5 PM | Historic Swisher Gym
Links: Live Stats
 
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – With FGCU volleyball just two wins away from tying a single-season program record, the team hits the road to face North Florida and Jacksonville this weekend. The Eagles take on the Osprey at 7 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 28 before competing in a 5 p.m. match against the Dolphins on Saturday, Oct. 29.
 
Both FGCU and North Florida will be looking to clinch a playoff spot during this weekend's matches. The Eagles can clinch with a win over UNF, while the Ospreys need sweeps of FGCU and Stetson paired with an NJIT loss or a single weekend victory and two losses from both Stetson and NJIT.
 
Fans can catch a live broadcast of the Eagles' match versus UNF on ESPN3. Live Stats for the match will be available via Sidearm Stats. There will be no video stream for Saturday's match, but Live Stats will be provided courtesy of StatBroadcast. All links can be found at FGCUAthletics.com.
 
THE GREEN AND BLUE
The Eagles have been on a roll this season, with victories in 20 of its last 21 matches. Wins in both matches this weekend would allow FGCU to tie its single season program record of 23 wins set in 2007. With 15 shutouts on the year, the Eagles are also just two sweeps shy of matching a program record of 17.
 
The Green and Blue tallied a season-high 66 assists in their 3-1 win against Bethune-Cookman earlier this week. Setter Maggie Rick (Alpharetta, Ga./Blessed Trinity Catholic HS) assisted on 58 of the team's 68 kills, marking the sixth 50-plus-kill performance of her career. 
 
With the help of Rick, FGCU is averaging a conference-high .288 hitting percentage, which ranks 10th in the NCAA. Senior Marlene Moeller (Ludinghausen, Germany/Pascal Gymnasium) leads the Eagles and the ASUN individually hitting .360.  Her 76 blocks rank second on the team behind freshman Daniele Serrano (Sanford, Fla./Seminole HS) who has amassed 81.
 
Sophomore hitter Amanda Carroll (Albuquerque, N.M./Sandia HS) is averaging a conference-high 4.43 kills per set – good for 17th in the nation, but it was newcomer Giovanna Borgiotti (Vienna, Va./George C. Marshall HS) who led the floor with 16 in the Eagles win over the Wildcats earlier this week.
 
SCOUTING NORTH FLORIDA
The Ospreys enter weekend play after splitting their last two matches with a 3-1 win over Jacksonville and a 3-0 loss to Florida A&M.
 
UNF has thrived along the net during the reign of head coach Steve Loeswick and leads the ASUN with a total of 225 so far this season, ranking 22nd in the NCAA. Senior Morgan Van Alstine's owns a team-best 109 blocks, 30 more than anyone else in the conference, and has also contributes offensively with 146 kills on the year.
 
Freshman Gabby O'Connell leads the Ospreys' attack with 290 kills on the season, followed by junior Katarina Raicevic who tallies 206.  Raicevic has been on a roll recently with two double-doubles in her last three matches including a career-high 18 kills against Jacksonville.
 
The Eagles hold a 19-4 all-time record over North Florida and have pulled out wins in their last five meetings.
 
SCOUTING JACKSONIVLLE
The Dolphins will face FGCU following 7 p.m. match against Stetson on Friday. In its last two matches, Jacksonville posted a 3-1 win over Bethune-Cookman and a 3-1 loss to UNF.
 
JU leads the conference in digs with the help of junior Mackenzie Swan who owns a team-high 4.92 digs per set.
 
The Dolphins have struggles with efficiency on offense, averaging a hitting percentage of just .172. Junior Jessica Armstrong and freshman Mallory Mattingly lead Jacksonville's attack with 192 and 191 kills respectively, while senior setter Jizzyan Gesualdo paces the offense and has averaged 8.97 assists per set in 2016.
 
FGCU owns a 12-10 all-time record over Jacksonville.
 
UP NEXT
The Eagles return to the Nest for their final home stretch of the 2016 season. FGCU will take on Lipscomb at 6 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 4, before facing Kennesaw State on Saturday, Nov. 5 at 7 p.m. As of now, KSU and FGCU are tied with an ASUN-leading conference record of 7-1, meaning the match could easily determine the ASUN regular season champion of 2016.
 
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 third year at the helm of the FGCU volleyball program.  His teams have combined for an overall 61-25 (.709) record, including a 28-8 (.778) mark in ASUN play. In his inaugural season, the Eagles finished with a record of 19-11 with a second-place ASUN finish. Botsford has coached 10 All-Conference selections in his two seasons. 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. A former professional volleyball player, he is a 1998 graduate of Tri-State University (now Trine), 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.