NASHVILLE, Tenn. – For the sixth time in as many seasons and the seventh time overall, the #3 FGCU volleyball team will advance to the ASUN Championship semifinals after defeating #6 Jacksonville (25-23, 21-25, 25-16, 25-16) in the championship's opening round Thursday night at Lipscomb's Allen Arena.

The Eagles got off to a sluggish start that saw them tied with the Dolphins following the second set but responded out of the 10-minute intermission with a pair of 25-16 wins in the third and fourth sets to claim the victory. The win marked the Eagles first in the ASUN Championship since 2013. FGCU improved to 26-5 on the year (11-3 ASUN), while Jacksonville's season ended with a 9-19 mark (5-9 ASUN). The Green and Blue won all three meetings with the Dolphins this season while only dropping one set and is now 14-10 in the all-time series between the conference rivals.

Highlighting the game, first team all-conference performer Amanda Carroll (Albuquerque, N.M./Sandia HS) logged a game-high 27 kills, which ranks tied for the third most kills in a game in program history, to go along with 13 digs. Carroll also holds the second-highest total after recording 30 kills against USC Upstate earlier this season. In three games against Jacksonville this season, the sophomore outside hitter totaled an impressive 56 kills and 35 digs.

Joining Carroll with a double-double, fellow first teamer Leigh Pudwill (Lino Lakes, Minn./Northern Iowa/Centennial HS) tallied 13 kills and 11 digs. Additionally, all-freshman team performer Giovanna Borgiotti (Vienna, Va./George C. Marshall HS) added 11 kills, while the Eagles' third and final first team all-conference player Maggie Rick (Alpharetta, Ga./Blessed Trinity Catholic HS) assisted on 45 of FGCU's 62 kills.

"That was a pretty difficult and disjointed start for us, and we were lucky to be tied going into the break," said head coach Matt Botsford. "Jacksonville was playing efficiently, and we couldn't slow down their offensive output. Things improved as the match went on, and a lot of that is a result of Amanda and Dani (Serrano) heating up. I was very pleased with the defensive efforts in the third and fourth sets. Karissa (Rhoades) and Courtney (Stephens) made some great adjustments that made a big difference. That kind of defensive focus is going to be important tomorrow night as we face a very talented Kennesaw State team with options along the entirety of the net."

Despite the slow start that saw FGCU hit .119 in the opening frame, the Eagles were able to claim what turned out to be a very important first set, 25-23. With neither team leading by more than two points in the set, Carroll and Serrano (Sanford, Fla./Seminole HS) were the focal points of the FGCU offense and helped the Eagles prevail. Serrano slammed a pair of big kills in the middle of the set, while Carroll recorded three of her four kills in the frame in a six-point stretch in the later stages. Then, with the score tied 23-23, Borgiotti came through with back-to-back kills to put the set away.  

FGCU continued to look for consistency in the second frame as Jacksonville led from start to finish and tied the score, 1-1. The Dolphins jumped out to a quick 10-5 lead in the frame and forced Botsford to take his first timeout in a five-point deficit. After trailing 16-8 midway through the set, the Eagles won seven of the next nine points to cut the Dolphins' lead to 18-15. However, Jacksonville took the momentum right back en route to claiming the second set, 25-21, despite Carroll coming alive with nine kills.

Following the 10-minute break between the second and third sets, the Eagles appeared to catch on to the game plan as they cruised to a pair of 25-16 wins in the final two sets of the game. FGCU improved upon its hitting percentage in each set throughout the night and used .289 and .371 percent efforts in the third and fourth sets to ultimately outslug the Dolphins .253 to .203. Carroll again led the way with seven kills in each of the last two sets, including the one that ended the third and another that capped off the win. Pudwill also stepped up down the stretch with nine of her 13 kills in the last two frames. Additionally, the freshman combination of Borgiotti and Serrano helped put the game away with a combined 10 kills during the span.

On the other side of the net, FGCU's defense suffocated Jacksonville and held them to hitting clips of .167 and .125 in the third and fourth sets, respectively. Rhoades (Valrico, Fla./Bloomingdale Senior HS) and Stephens (Winter Park, Fla./Winter Park HS) spearheaded the defensive effort with a combined 42 digs in the game, including a game-high 24 from Rhoades. 

UP NEXT
The Eagles will square off with #2 Kennesaw State (18-10, 12-2 ASUN) in a semifinal match scheduled for 8:30 p.m. ET tomorrow. The Eagles and Owls split a pair of regular season matchups with each team emerging victorious on its home court.

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 66-27 (.710) record, including a 32-10 (.762) 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.