COLUMBIA, S.C. - The FGCU beach volleyball team (5-6) dropped a pair of matches at Wheeler Park in the Gamecock Challenge to UNC Wilmington (4-1) and No. 3 Hawaii (5-0) on the campus of the University of South Carolina Sunday.
"It is disappointing to walk away 0-2 for the day, but I feel really good about the progress we are making heading into ASUN play," FGCU head coach
Matt Botsford said. "The team is really focused, and I love seeing how much effort they are putting into the learning side of things. You can sense their desire to keep evolving and improving, which is keeping everyone motivated."
In that opening match against UNC Wilmington (10-6), the No. 4 pair of
Kayla Whetstone and
Snowy Burnam won the opening set, but fell 22-20 in a tight second set before falling 15-12 in the final set. The No. 5 pair of
Kaitlan Krivdo and
Alayna Ryan won 21-16 in the second to tie it up, but fell 15-13 in the final set.
"I thought we struggled this morning taking advantage of opportunities (against UNC Wilmington)," Botsford said. "We had a good chance to be up 2-0 after the 4/5, but within minutes that quickly shifted to an 0-2 deficit. We really needed to find a way to at least get out of there with a split, but unfortunately we didn't respond well to UNCW's pressure at the end of sets."
The No. 2 duo of
Karissa Rhoades and
Katherine Puisis brought FGCU within one following their 21-18, 21-15 win over Halle Hunt and JM Lewandowski, but the other pair of
Amanda Carroll and
Mackenzie Allen, along with
Giovanna Borgiotti (Vienna, Va./George C. Marshall HS) and
Ashley Glickert (Chesterfield, Mo/Parkway Central HS), fell in two sets apiece despite a couple two-point sets.
In the sweep against Hawaii (17-3),
Puisis (Mason, Ohio/William Mason HS) and
Rhoades (Valrico, Fla./Bloomingdale Senior HS) were the lone duo to force three sets before falling 15-12.
Allen (Naples, Fla./Gulf Coast HS) and
Carroll (Albuquerque, N.M./Sandia HS) almost forced a third set, but fell 22-20 in the second set.
Ryan (Fort Myers, Fla./Fort Myers HS) and
Krivdo (Hope Mills, N.C./Grays Creek HS) also had a two-point set, 21-19, in the opener.
"Against Hawaii, we just weren't able to match their consistency in play," Botsford said. "They control the ball so well and attack with such precision. If you make even a small mistake, they take advantage."
Puisis and Rhoades are now a team-best 7-4 this year, just ahead of
Burnam (Palm City, Fla./Jensen Beach HS) and
Whetstone (Arlington, Texas/Arlington Lamar HS), who are 6-5.
Four of the six losses for the Eagles this year have come to teams ranked in the AVCA national poll, including No. 3 Hawaii, No. 8 South Carolina, No. 11 Georgia State and No. 13 Florida International.
FGCU will open up ASUN play in Macon, Ga. on March 30-31 against Coastal Carolina and Mercer. The team then stays on the road at Stetson April 4 before hosting five matches at Estero Community Park to conclude the regular season.
UNC Wilmington 4, FGCU 1
1. Lott/Kline (UNCW) d.
Allen/Carroll (FGCU) 21-17, 22-20
2.
Rhoades/Puisis (FGCU) d. Hunt/Lewandowski (UNCW) 21-18, 21-15
3. McCullough/Montgomery (UNCW) d.
Borgiotti/Glickert (FGCU) 21-19, 21-17
4. Rooney/Thomas (UNCW) d.
Whetstone/Burnam (FGCU) 13-21, 22-20, 15-12
5. Augustine/Mullinax (UNCW) d.
Krivdo/Ryan (FGCU) 21-19, 16-21, 15-13
Hawaii 5, FGCU 0
1. Maglio/Schucht (H) d.
Allen/Carroll (FGCU) 21-16, 22-20
2. Weaver/Kan (H) d.
Puisis/Rhoades (FGCU) 21-15, 19-21, 15-12
3. Martin/Monkhouse (H) d.
Borgiotti/Glickert (FGCU) 21-12, 21-7
4. Homayun/Ozee (H) d.
Burnam/Whetstone (FGCU) 21-15, 21-8
5. Dreeuws/Zalopany (H) d.
Ryan/Krivdo (FGCU) 21-19, 21-11
FOLLOW ALONG
For up-to-the minute information and a behind-the-scenes look at the FGCU volleyball program, follow on Twitter at @FGCU_BeachVB, on Facebook at /FGCUVolleyball and on Instagram at @FGCU_VB.
COACH BOTSFORD
Head coach Matt Botsford, who is also the head coach of the FGCU indoor volleyball program, is in his fifth season at the helm of the FGCU beach volleyball program in 2018. In his tenure, the team has compiled a 37-52 record, and he's improved the team's win total each season. In fact, he led the program to 11 wins in 2016 and 15 in 2017 - both of which were new records for most wins in a season. The beach volleyball program is entering just its seventh year at FGCU and has an overall record of 44-61. 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.
