FORT MYERS, Fla. – The FGCU volleyball team (15-6) will look to extend its six-match winning streak in a 6 p.m. home matchup against Bethune-Cookman (8-8) on Tuesday. It will mark the final non-conference matchup of the season for the Eagles, who will then host Stetson at 6 p.m. on Saturday.

"Bethune is really athletic (and) fast," FGCU head coach Matt Botsford said of the Bethune-Cookman matchup following the win over North Florida. "They play amazing defense. We had a tough time up there just a couple weeks ago, and they were coming off a really big break, so I would anticipate they're going to be much better. We're going to have to continue to play cleanly and manage the net the way we have the last couple weeks if we want to get out of here with a win."

THE GREEN AND BLUE
Not only does FGCU enter Tuesday's tilt having won six consecutive matches, but the Eagles have also won 16 consecutive sets dating back to the final set against Lipscomb on Sept. 30. Over the past five matches, FGCU has not given up more than 21 points in any set.

"I think it even extends beyond the last six," Botsford said. "Earlier (last) week, we even talked about the last 10 matches for us and now it extends into 12. The blocking has changed an awful lot for us. We're able to hold teams to a much lower hitting percentage. That wasn't the case early on, so as good as our offense was, teams were hitting right there with us. Then it became a slugfest and we didn't want to get in those kinds of matches. Now we're starting to see the defense wear on teams so if we keep that standard where we are offensively, it's going to make it challenging to play us."

This past weekend, FGCU handed Jacksonville its first loss in ASUN play and then followed that up with a sweep of North Florida. In doing so, the Eagles are now locked in a three-way tie for first place in the ASUN standings with Kennesaw State and Jacksonville at 6-1. 

During the team's winning streak, Amanda Carroll (81), Cortney VanLiew (67), Snowy Burnam (42) and Daniele Serrano (36) have combined for 226 of the team's 271 kills, while Kaitlan Krivdo (23) and Maggie Rick (19) have also contributed in that area. As a team, FGCU is hitting .302 during the stretch. Rick (Alpharetta, Ga./Blessed Trinity Catholic HS) has produced 205 assists and 34 digs. The team's defense has also really seen improved play from several players. Karissa Rhoades (Valrico, Fla./Bloomingdale Senior HS) has a team-high 76 digs since Sept. 30, while Carroll (61), VanLiew (49) and Courtney Stephens (48) have also performed well. 

In fact, Stephens (Winter Park, Fla./Winter Park HS) is just 31 digs away from becoming only the fifth player in program history to record 1,000 in a career.

Carroll (Albuquerque, N.M/Sandia HS) has four double-doubles since the streak started, and VanLiew (Seymour, Ind./Columbus East HS) picked up two more double-doubles this past weekend to push her season total to five. In fact, her play this past weekend resulted in the outside hitter being named the ASUN's player and freshman of the week. She now has double-digit kills in four straight and seven of the past eight matches, and she's hitting a team-high .306 over the team's winning streak, just ahead of Carroll (.305).

At the net, Serrano (Sanford, Fla./Seminole HS) has totaled 25 blocks, or 1.32 per set over the past six matches. Her five solo blocks during the win streak has moved her up to eighth on the program's career list with 25. Also during the stretch, Krivdo (Hope Mills, N.C./Grays Creek HS) has added 22, while Burnam (Palm City, Fla./Jensen Beach HS) has 16, VanLiew has 14 and Carroll has 13.

SCOUTING BETHUNE-COOKMAN
VanLiew isn't the only player in tomorrow's match who has picked up weekly conference recognition recently as the Wildcats had Alondra Bautista named the player of the week, Rechez Lindsay the defensive specialist of the week and Phalen Clark the setter of the week in the MEAC. Bautista, a senior from Carolina, Puerto Rico, had three double-doubles while hitting .303, including 23 kills and 18 digs against North Carolina A&T State. Lindsay, a senior from Diego Martin, Trinidad & Tobago, averaged 4.4 digs per set, including at least 15 in every match. Clark, a senior from Baton Rouge, La., had two double-doubles while averaging 10.8 assists per set. She had at least 39 assists in each match, including 50 in the win over North Carolina A&T State.

Jordan Jefferson leads Bethune-Cookman with 165 kills, but Rakaya Neely is second on the team with 138 at a team-high .331 percentage. The aforementioned Clark and Lindsay have a team-high 534 assists and 238 digs, respectively. Neely leads the team with 70 total blocks, including 12 of the solo variety.

Bethune-Cookman is currently 5-0 in MEAC play, which is good for first place in the Southern Division standings. They have won four straight and six of their past seven matches entering Tuesday.

SERIES HISTORY
FGCU is 11-0 all-time against Bethune-Cookman with wins in 33 of 38 sets. No match has gone more than four sets in the series with the Eagles claiming a 5-0 record at home. On top of that, FGCU defeated Bethune-Cookman in three sets on Sept. 22 of this season. In that match, Carroll had 17 kills while hitting .368, while Rick had 32 assists, Rhoades had 16 digs and Sharonda Pickering (Sea Cow's Bay, Tortola, British Virgin Islands) had one solo block and seven block assists. 

CLIMBING THE RECORD BOOKS

Kills (Career)
1. 1,209 - Amanda Carroll (.262) - 2015-present
2. 1,167 - Brooke Youngquist (.246) - 2004-07
3. 1,132 - Olivia Mesner (.331) - 2011-14
4. 961 - Jessica Barnes (.194) - 2010-11, 13-14
5. 926 - Kaitlin Holm (.227) - 2011-13
6. 837 - Ericka Fonseca (.363) - 2005-06
7. 725 - Jill Hopper (.203) - 2011-13
8. 700 - Heather Van Olst (.212) - 2004-06
9. 693 - Eleonora Kazarian (.225) - 2014-15
10. 678 - Ana Kokanovic (.281) - 2007-08

Points (Career)
1. 1,394.5 - Amanda Carroll (1,209k 88a 33-129b) - 2015-present
2. 1,338.0 - Olivia Mesner (1,132k 4a 62-280b) - 2011-14
3. 1,327.5 - Brooke Youngquist (1,167k 99a 11-101b) - 2004-07
4. 1,087.5 - Kaitlin Holm (926k 40a 38-167b) - 2011-13
5. 1,045.5 - Jessica Barnes (961k 43a 13-57b) 2010-11, 13-14

Attack Attempts (Career)
1. 3,139 - Brooke Youngquist (1,167-396-3,139) - 2004-07
2. 3,097 - Amanda Carroll (1,209-398-3,097) - 2015-present
3. 2,725 - Jessica Barnes (961-433-2,725) 2010-11, 13-14
4. 2,449 - Kaitlin Holm (926-371-2,449) - 2011-13
5. 2,356 - Olivia Mesner (1,132-353-2,356) 2011-14

Assists (Career)
1. 4,408 - Gigi Meyer (474 sets) 2011-14
2. 3,233 - Maggie Rick (309 sets) - 2015-present
3. 3,108 - Chandra Lefever (201 sets) - 2006-07, 09
4. 1,809 - Laura Manovill (56 matches*) - 2004-05
5. 1,475 - Roberta Santos (180 sets) - 2007-08

Digs (Career)
1. 1,965 - Whitney Hendry (83 matches*) - 2004-07
2. 1,687 - Whitney Masters (483 sets) - 2011-14
3. 1,652 - Holly Youngquist (418 sets) - 2008-11
4. 1,367 - Brooke Youngquist (89 matches*) - 2004-07
5. 969 - Courtney Stephens (413 sets) - 2014-present
6. 947 - Gigi Meyer (474 sets) - 2011-14
7. 884 - Heather Van Olst (89 matches*) - 2004-06
8. 832 - Amanda Carroll (300 sets) - 2015-present
9. 765 - Chandra Lefever (201 sets) - 2006-07, 09
10. 681 - Vanessa Benke (164 sets) - 2013-15

Service Aces (Career)
1. 139 - Ana Kokanovic (178 sets) - 2007-08
2. 99 - Roberta Santos (180 sets) - 2007-08
    99 - Gigi Meyer (474 sets) - 2011-14
    99 - Brooke Youngquist (89 matches*) - 2004-07
5. 92 - Whitney Hendry (83 matches*) - 2004-07
6. 88 - Jill Hopper (246 sets) - 2011-13
    88 - Amanda Carroll (300 sets) - 2015-present
8. 84 - Courtney Stephens (413 sets) - 2014-present
9. 78 - Whitney Masters (483 sets) - 2011-14
10. 75 - Chandra Lefever (201 sets) - 2006-07, 09

Solo Blocks (Career)
1. 62 - Olivia Mesner (428 sets) - 2011-14
2. 51 - Ericka Fonseca (63 matches*) - 2005-06
3. 45 - Ashley Yance (296 sets) - 2005-09
4. 38 - Kaitlin Holm (359 sets) - 2011-13
5. 36 - Devon Watts (60 matches*) - 2004-05
6. 35 - Kristy Hartley (29 matches*) - 2004-05
7. 33 - Amanda Carroll (300 sets) - 2015-present
8. 25 - Daniele Serrano (187 sets) - 2016-present
9. 23 - Melissa Duffield (22 matches*) - 2005
9. 23 - Jacqueline Cowden (171 sets) - 2009-10

* Set information not available for this player.

FOLLOW ALONG
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COACH BOTSFORD
Head coach Matt Botsford is in his fourth season at the helm of FGCU volleyball. In 2016, Botsford's squad produced one of its most successful seasons ever at 27-6, with the win total representing the most in Division I program history and falling just two shy of the all-time mark. His teams have combined for an 82-34 (.707) overall record, including a 38-11 (.776) mark in ASUN play. In his inaugural season, the Eagles finished with a record of 19-11 with a second-place ASUN finish, and he improved that win total to 21 in his second season. Botsford has coached 15 All ASUN selections in his three 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.

IRMA RELIEF DONATIONS
In the wake of Hurricane Irma, many individuals and families throughout Southwest Florida are still in desperate need of assistance. To aid in those relief efforts, FGCU Athletics will be collecting donations at all Eagle home games for the immediate future. Donation items most needed include: non-perishable food, clothing, household items and first-aid supplies. Additionally, those unable to attend upcoming home games can drop off donations in canisters located in the Alico Arena lobby. All donations will be given to those hardest hit in Lee and Collier counties.