FORT MYERS, Fla. – The FGCU volleyball team (3-3) battled in the morning session against FAU and hung tough in the evening against Miami but ultimately came up short against both in-state rivals at the Homewood Suites Sunshine State Classic. The Eagles fell to the visiting Owls, 3-1 (25-19, 31-29, 17-25, 32-30), in the morning before going down, 3-0 (25-16, 25-23, 28-26), to the Hurricanes in the nightcap.

After coming up six points shy of FAU in the opening set, the Eagles and Owls battled to deuce point on six occasions in the second frame before FAU ultimately took a 2-0 lead. FGCU then lead from start to finish in the third set to get on the board before again squaring off with the Owls in seven deuce points in the fourth frame but also coming up short.

Similarly against Miami, the Green and Blue dropped a quick first set before falling to the Hurricanes by two in both the second and third frames. Both sets were tied at 23, but Miami came out on top and won the match after the two teams battled to three deuce points in the final frame.

Sophomore middle blocker Daniele Serrano (Sanford, Fla./Seminole HS) continued her efficient play from Friday night as she totaled 14 kills, three solo blocks and two block assists and while hitting .300 and .429 in Saturday's matches, respectively. She was named to the All-Tournament Team at the conclusion of the weekend. Additionally, Amanda Carroll (Albuquerque, N.M./Sandia HS) tallied 35 kills and 15 assists in the two matches. She sits three kills shy of becoming the third player in program history to register 1,000 kills in her career.

"We were in quite a few deuce sets and came out on the short end of those maybe every time, that was kind of the story of the weekend," said FGCU head coach Matt Botsford. "I think part of it is experience, I think part of it is working through personnel questions and trying to find the right fit. It's a tough situation – to end a game and be playing out of position – but I'm happy we were in those positions to win even though we didn't come out on top. We faced teams who had their own unique style, and at the end of the day it's about adaptability and how quickly we can put in to play the things we are trying to do to react and respond to what we're seeing."

MATCH ONE
FGCU got off to a slow start as the Eagles couldn't capitalize on any of their first eight swings and fell in a 9-3 hole. Conversely, FAU came out hitting .417 in its first 12 swings. The Green and Blue began to battle back behind a pair of kills by Carroll to cut the lead to 13-10 in the opening frame, but the FAU lead blossomed to 17-10 after a four-point run and the Owls' advantage stayed at five points or larger for the remainder of the set.

Trailing 5-2 to start the second set, FGCU rattled off three straight points coming out of a timeout and evened the score. The Eagles later assumed an 11-9 lead behind stifling defense that saw the Owls hitting -.154 in the frame at the time. With a 24-20 lead late in the set, the Green and Blue looked to even the match, 1-1, but FAU battled back to tie the score, 24-24. The two teams traded points before the Owls ultimately won the set, 31-29, and took a commanding 2-0 lead. The FGCU defense had stepped up to hold FAU in check for much of the set, but the Owls' attack came alive when they needed it most.

The Eagles came out sharp in the following frame as they jumped out to a 7-1 lead and never looked back en route to forcing a fourth set. FGCU turned in a complete set by holding the Owls to a .032 hitting percentage while swinging more confidently to start. Additionally, the front-line combination of Serrano and Morgan Waller (Reno, Nev./Damonte Ranch HS) turned in a pair of block assists, while Sharonda Pickering (Sea Cow's Bay, Tortola, British Virgin Islands/Elmore Stout HS/Hillsborough CC) tallied a solo block. Serrano was an efficient 3-for-4 in the set, and Cortney VanLiew (Seymour, Ind./East Columbus HS) matched her with three kills.

Much like the third set, FGCU came out swinging down 2-1 and assumed a 10-5 lead as they connected on 10 of their first 11 swings. FAU battled back to cut the lead to 14-11 and tied the set, 17-17. FGCU again pulled back in front and held double set point, but like the second set, the Owls tied things up at 24. The two teams traded points until the match was all square at 30 apiece, and FAU was able to close out the match on a kill from Sigourney Kame and a FGCU attack error.

MATCH TWO
FGCU fell behind 15-8 in the opening set and was forced to call two quick timeouts to regroup. The Eagles scored three straight coming out of the break to narrow the margin, but Miami quickly got all three points back and extended its lead to 20-13 before ultimately winning the set, 25-16. The Hurricanes hit .517 in the set.

Neither team held more than a two-point advantage in a highly-competitive second set until FGCU took its largest lead of the frame at 20-17. However, Miami responded to win the next three points coming out of a timeout and even the score. Much like the morning session, the Eagles struggled to put things away while substituting personnel in and out of the match, and Miami went on to win the set, 25-23, and take a 2-0 lead.

After a back-and-forth early portion of the third set that saw Miami leading 7-3 and FGCU going on to win eight of the next 10 points to take an 11-9 lead, Miami was able to assume the momentum and take a 20-16 advantage. The Eagles then won three of the next four points to cut the Hurricanes' lead to one and eventually force a trio of deuce points. However, despite turning in its best offensive performance of the weekend with a .318 hitting percentage in the set, FGCU was unable to come out of a deuce point with an advantage and Miami ultimately claimed the match.

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Haley Templeton – Miami (MVP)
Olga Strantzali – Miami
Sylvia Hernandez – Miami
Kia Bright – UCF
Jordan Pingel – UCF
Kristi Tekavac – FAU
Daniele Serrano - FGCU

UP NEXT
FGCU hits the road for the first time in 2017 as the Eagles travel to Davidson, N.C. to compete against Georgia, Davidson and Wofford at the Wildcat Classic.

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 finished his third season at the helm of the 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 two shy of the all-time mark. His teams have combined for an overall 70-31 (.693) 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 15 All-Conference 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.
 
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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.