FORT MYERS, Fla. - The top-ranked FGCU volleyball team (22-3, 10-1) will look to keep streaking as they host Stetson (Friday, 7 p.m.) and North Florida (Sunday, 2 p.m.) inside Alico Arena this weekend to close out their home portion of the regular season schedule.
Senior Day
Prior to Friday's match, the volleyball program will honor its three seniors -
Giovanna Borgiotti (Vienna, Va./George C. Marshall HS),
Amanda Carroll and
Daniele Serrano.
In nearly four seasons, they are on pace to become the first senior class in the program's Division I era to record at least 100 wins. The trio has helped lead the Eagles to a 98-26 record entering this weekend, including a 46-9 record in ASUN play while advancing to three straight ASUN tournament championship matches. Last year, they led the program to an ASUN regular season championship and its first ever NCAA Tournament appearance, where the Eagles knocked off No. 13 UCF in the opening round.
Still Streaking
The Eagles will enter Friday's tilt having won 12 straight matches and 19 consecutive sets. They are one of just 10 teams across the nation with at least 20 victories, and their 22 victories is tied with Milwaukee and Stephen F. Austin for the second-most in the nation behind Western Kentucky's 23.
Most Division I victories
1. Western Kentucky - 23
2. FGCU - 22
Milwaukee - 22
Stephen F. Austin - 22
5. Pittsburgh - 21
South Dakota - 21
Colorado State - 21
8. Towson - 20
New Mexico State - 20
Robert Morris - 20
In addition to that, FGCU's 12-match winning streak is tied for the seventh-longest in the nation. With Tuesday's win over Liberty, the Eagles are now four shy of matching the program's Division I era winning streak record of 16 that was set last year.
Longest Division I winning streaks
1. Western Kentucky - 20
Colorado State - 20
3. South Dakota - 18
4. Stephen F. Austin - 15
5. Towson - 14
Fairfield - 14
7. FGCU - 12
Creighton - 12
New Mexico State - 12
10. VCU - 11
Wisconsin
Meanwhile, FGCU's 19-set winning streak is three shy of matching the 2017 team for the second-longest in the program's Division I era behind the 2007 team, who won 30 straight.
ASUN Roundup
FGCU currently sits atop the ASUN standings with a 10-1 record, just ahead of Kennesaw State (9-2). While they'll have to wait for Nov. 8 to meet the Owls again, the Eagles can't overlook any match, especially as Stetson rides into town with an eight-match winning streak. The Hatters are one of two teams outside of Liberty to win a set against FGCU in conference season. In fact, the Eagles are 36-2 in sets vs conference teams since their loss to Liberty to open conference play.
Conference Standings
*1. FGCU - 22-3, 10-1
2. Kennesaw State - 16-7, 9-2
3. Lipscomb - 11-10, 7-3
4. Liberty - 14-9, 7-4
5. Stetson - 10-11, 7-4
6. North Florida - 11-14, 4-6
7. Jacksonville - 7-18, 3-8
8. North Alabama - 3-21, 1-10
9. NJIT - 1-25, 0-10
*clinched ASUN tournament berth
Highest RPI
FGCU was ranked 44th in the season's first official RPI rankings, which was the highest in program history. They were ranked 48th the following week, 52nd last week and 63rd this week, which remains the highest among all conference teams.
#63 FGCU
#90 Kennesaw State
#132 Liberty
#176 Lipscomb
#220 Stetson
#256 North Florida
#280 Jacksonville
#300 North Alabama
#318 NJIT
Series History
FGCU is 22-2 all-time against Stetson having won 12 consecutive matches in a streak that started Nov. 21, 2013. During that unblemished stretch, the Eagles only went to five sets twice and have produced sweeps in six of the 12.
Snowy Burnam (17) and
Cortney VanLiew (14) combined for 31 kills in the first matchup against the Hatters this year.
Dana Axner added 19 digs, while
Chelsey Lockey had 52 assists. The Eagles produced 15 blocks as a team, led by four apiece from
Burnam (Palm City, Fla./Jensen Beach HS) and
Tori Morris.
Meanwhile, FGCU is 23-6 all-time against North Florida. The Ospreys have lost three straight - all in straight sets - in the series, but they claimed a pair of five set wins over the Eagles on their home court in 2016 and 2017. The Green and Blue have never lost to North Florida in Alico Arena, sporting an 11-0 record and winning 30 of 33 sets in Fort Myers.
VanLiew (Seymour, Ind./Columbus East HS) had a match-high 18 kills against UNF on Oct. 4, while
Axner (Dublin, Ohio/Dublin Coffman HS) had 13 digs.
Lockey (Eaton, Colo./Eaton HS) chipped in 37 assists, while
Morris (Virginia Beach Va./Floyd E. Kellam HS) had five blocks.
Green and Blue Notes
Last Tuesday, Axner became the seventh player in program history to reach 1,000 career digs in the team's straight-set win over Bethune-Cookman. She tallied 20 in the match and now sits at 1,035. The sophomore reached the milestone in just 56 career matches, becoming the fastest to do so in program history, and she already ranks fifth in the program's Division I era in career digs. The last player to reach the milestone was
Amanda Carroll on Aug. 31, 2018.
Furthermore, Axner has extended her season-high streak of matches with 10 or more digs to 17. She had her career-high 28-match streak snapped on Sept. 13 against Indiana, which was the only time this year she failed to record at least 10 and was a streak that dated back to Sept. 21 of last year. Nationally, her 411 digs overall and 5.14 per set rank 37th and 17th, respectively.
VanLiew, who is one of just three players in program history to achieve at least 1,000 kills and 500 digs in a career along with
Carroll (Albuquerque, N.M./Sandia HS) and Brooke Youngquist Sweat, has double-digit kills in 19 of 25 matches overall this year. On Oct. 5, she concluded a program record-tying streak of 15 consecutive matches with at least 10 or more kills, tying Eleonora Kazarian (Sept. 20 - Nov. 7, 2014) and Ana Kokanovic (Oct. 4 - Nov. 15, 2008). On top of that, she has seven of her 26 career double-doubles this year and ranks among the top 50 nationally in attacks/set, kills/set, points, points/set and kills.
Serrano (Sanford, Fla./Seminole HS), a senior middle blocker who already holds all of FGCU's career blocking records, continues her chase to become the ASUN's all-time blocks leader. She currently sits in second with 443.0, just 32 shy of surpassing Meredith Hardy's (ETSU, 2010-13, 474.0) all-time mark.
Lockey (Eaton, Colo./Eaton HS) has tallied at least 20 assists in every match this year, as well as 30 or more in 22 of 25 matches. Furthermore, she has eight matches with at least 40, including a career-high 54 against San Diego State on Aug. 31 and UCF on Sept. 20. She has five double-doubles this year in assists and digs, as well as two matches with at least 30 assists, five kills, five digs and two blocks. She is 77 assists shy of producing the 10th season with at least 1,000 in program history.
Burnam inched her way up the record book in several categories against Liberty on Tuesday. Not only is she now three kills shy of becoming the 11th player in the program's Division I era with at least 600 in a career, but she is in sole possession of ninth place on the career block assist list with 156, moved into the top 10 in career blocks with 167 and needs one more point to move into the top 10 in that career category.
ASUN Leaders (Top 10 through Oct. 30)
Kills - VanLiew (1st, 333)
Kills/Set - VanLiew (1st, 4.16)
Hitting Percentage - Jones (8th, .308), Serrano (9th, .297), Shomaker (10th, .296)
Assists - Lockey (3rd, 924)
Assists/Set - Lockey (2nd, 11.13)
Aces - Carroll (4th, 32), Lockey (T-10th, 23)
Digs - Axner (3rd, 411)
Digs/Set - Axner (1st, 5.14)
Solo Blocks - Serrano (8th, 10)
Block Assists - Serrano (4th, 70), Morris (T-5th, 66)
Total Blocks - Serrano (T-2nd, 80), Morris (6th, 74)
Blocks/Set - Morris (T-2nd, 1.12), Serrano (5th, 1.04), Jones (8th, 0.90)
Points - VanLiew (2nd, 372.5)
Points/Set - VanLiew (T-1st, 4.7)
NCAA Individual Leaders (Top 50 through Oct. 30)
Assists/Set - Lockey (21st, 11.12)
Attacks/Set - VanLiew (46th, 10.90)
Digs/Set - Axner (17th, 5.14)
Kills/Set - VanLiew (36th, 4.16)
Points - VanLiew (42nd, 372.5)
Points/Set - VanLiew (37th, 4.66)
Total Assists - Lockey (7th, 923)
Total Digs - Axner (37th, 411)
Total Kills - VanLIew (34th, 333)
NCAA Team Leaders (Top 50 through Oct. 30)
Assists/Set - 33rd, 12.73
Blocks/Set - 40th, 2.48
Hitting Percentage - 22nd, .269
Kills/Set - 36th, 13.60
W-L Percentage - 12th, .880
Opponent Hitting Percentage - 4th, .133
Assists - 46th, 1.057
Blocks - 31st, 206.0
FGCU CAREER RECORD BOOK (DIVISION I ERA, 2007-PRESENT)
Kills
1. 1,450 - Amanda CARROLL (.257) - 2015-present
2. 1,132 - Olivia MESNER (.331) - 2011-14
3. 1,123 - Cortney VANLIEW (.236) - 2017-present
4. 961 - Jessica BARNES (.194) - 2010-11,13-14
5. 926 - Kaitlin HOLM (.227) - 2011-13
6. 774 - Daniele SERRANO (.336) - 2016-present
7. 725 - Jill HOPPER (.203) - 2011-13
8. 693 - Eleonora KAZARIAN (.225) - 2014-15
9. 678 - Ana KOKANOVIC (.281) - 2007-08
10. 649 - Jelena SIMIC (.206) - 2009,11
11. 597 - Snowy BURNAM (.234) - 2017-present
Attack attempts
1. 3,750 - Amanda CARROLL (1,450-486-3,750) - 2015-present
2. 3,099 - Cortney VANLIEW (1,123-393-3,099) - 2017-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
6. 1,889 - Jill HOPPER (725-342-1,889) - 2011-13
7. 1,846 - Jelena SIMIC (649-269-1,846) - 2009,11
8. 1,808 - Eleonora KAZARIAN (693-287-1,808) - 2014-15
9. 1,775 - Daniele SERRANO (774-177-1,775) - 2016-present
10. 1,688 - Snowy BURNAM (597-202-1,688) - 2017-present
11. 1,574 - Ana KOKANOVIC (678-236-1,574) - 2007-08
12. 1,553 - Giovanna BORGIOTTI (543-265-1,553) - 2016-present
Digs
1. 1,687 - Whitney MASTERS (483 sets) - 2011-14
2. 1,652 - Holly YOUNGQUIST (418 sets) - 2008-11
3. 1,184 - Amanda CARROLL (426 sets) - 2015-present
4. 1,084 - Courtney STEPHENS (451 sets) - 2014-17
5. 1,035 - Dana AXNER (200 sets) - 2018-present
6. 947 - Gigi MEYER (474 sets) - 2011-14
7. 877 - Karissa RHOADES (379 sets) - 2015-18
8. 823 - Maggie RICK (467 sets) - 2015-18
9. 708 - Cortney VANLIEW (305 sets) - 2017-present
10. 681 - Vanessa BENKE (164 sets) - 2013-15
Assists
1. 4,540 - Maggie RICK (467 sets) - 2015-18
2. 4,408 - Gigi MEYER (474 sets) - 2011-14
3. 1,668 - Chandra LEFEVER (201 sets) - 2007,09
4. 1,475 - Roberta SANTOS (180 sets) - 2007-08
5. 1,399 - Chelsey LOCKEY (193 sets) - 2018-present
6. 1,089 - Camil DOMINGUEZ (164 sets) - 2010-11
7. 510 - Courtney GREENBERG (115 sets) - 2012-13
8. 309 - Whitney MASTERS (483 sets) - 2011-14
9. 238 - Holly YOUNGQUIST (418 sets) - 2008-11
10. 188 - Dana AXNER (200 sets) - 2018-present
Solo Blocks
1. 64 - Daniele SERRANO (417 sets) - 2016-present
2. 62 - Olivia MESNER (428 sets) - 2011-14
3. 42 - Amanda CARROLL (426 sets) - 2015-present
4. 41 - Ashley YANCE (296 sets) - 2007-09
5. 38 - Kaitlin HOLM (359 sets) - 2011-13
6. 24 - Sharonda PICKERING (168 sets) - 2017-18
7. 23 - Jacqueline COWDEN (171 sets) - 2009-10
8. 22 - Cortney VANLIEW (305 sets) - 2017-present
9. 21 - Karina MAMBUCA (233 sets) - 2012-13
21 - Roberta SANTOS (180 sets) - 2007-08
Block assists
1. 379 - Daniele SERRANO (417 sets) - 2016-present
2. 280 - Olivia MESNER (428 sets) - 2011-14
3. 230 - Ashley YANCE (296 sets) - 2007-09
4. 180 - Marlene MOELLER (301 sets) - 2013-16
5. 176 - Karina MAMBUCA (233 sets) - 2012-13
6. 167 - Kaitlin HOLM (359 sets) - 2011-13
7. 159 - Lauren TUTWILER (208 sets) - 2014-15
8. 157 - Amanda CARROLL (426 sets) - 2015-present
9. 156 - Snowy BURNAM (285 sets) - 2017-present
10. 153 - Eleonora KAZARIAN (213 sets) - 2014-15
Total blocks
1. 443 - Daniele SERRANO (417 sets) - 2016-present
2. 342 - Olivia MESNER (428 sets) - 2011-14
3. 271 - Ashley YANCE (296 sets) - 2007-09
4. 205 - Kaitlin HOLM (359 sets) - 2011-13
5. 199 - Amanda CARROLL (426 sets) - 2015-present
6. 197 - Marlene MOELLER (301 sets) - 2013-16
197 - Karina MAMBUCA (233 sets) - 2012-13
8. 176 - Sharonda PICKERING (168 sets) - 2017-18
9. 170 - Lauren TUTWILER (208 sets) - 2014-15
10. 167 - Snowy BURNAM (285 sets) - 2017-present
Blocks per set (min. 150 sets)
1. 1.06 - Daniele SERRANO (417 sets) - 2016-present
2. 1.05 - Sharonda PICKERING (168 sets) - 2017-18
3. 0.92 - Ashley YANCE (296 sets) - 2007-09
4. 0.85 - Roberta SANTOS (180 sets) - 2007-08
5. 0.85 - Karina MAMBUCA (233 sets) - 2012-13
6. 0.82 - Lauren TUTWILER (208 sets) - 2014-15
7. 0.80 - Olivia MESNER (428 sets) - 2011-14
8. 0.77 - Eleonora KAZARIAN (213 sets) - 2014-15
9. 0.73 - Audrey CAMPBELL (157 sets) - 2007-08
10. 0.70 - Jacqueline COWDEN (171 sets) - 2009-10
Points
1. 1,703.5 - Amanda CARROLL (1,450k 133a 42-157b) - 2015-present
2. 1,338.0 - Olivia MESNER (1,132k 4a 62-280b) - 2011-14
3. 1,253.0 - Cortney VANLIEW (1,123k 62a 22-92b) - 2017-present
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
6. 1,029.5 - Daniele SERRANO (774k 2a 64-379b) - 2016-present
7. 877.5 - Jill HOPPER (725k 88a 18-93b) - 2011-13
8. 845.5 - Ana KOKANOVIC (678k 139a 9-39b) - 2007-08
9. 821.5 - Eleonora KAZARIAN (693k 40a 12-153b) - 2014-15
10. 718.0 - Jelena SIMIC (649k 43a 12-28b) - 2009,11
11. 717.0 - Snowy BURNAM (597k 31a 11-156b) - 2017-present
Matches played
1. 131 - Maggie RICK - 2015-18
2. 126 - Gigi MEYER - 2011-14
126 - Courtney STEPHENS - 2014-17
126 - Whitney MASTERS - 2011-14
5. 123 - Amanda CARROLL - 2015-present
123 - Karissa RHOADES - 2015-18
123 - Daniele SERRANO - 2016-present
8. 119 - Caroline JORDAN - 2013-16
9. 114 - Olivia MESNER - 2011-14
10. 113 - Holly YOUNGQUIST - 2008-11
11. 104 - Giovanna BORGIOTTI - 2016-present
ASUN CAREER RECORD BOOK (ALL-TIME)
Kills
1. Megan Devine (ETSU, 2010-13) - 1,940
2. Carlyle Nusbaum (Lipscomb, 2015-18) - 1,715
3. Alex Kelly (Lipscomb, 2007-10) - 1,746
4. Lauren Ford (Lipscomb, 2011-14) - 1,597
5. Paige Pridgeon (North Florida, 2009-12) - 1,593
6. Maggie Johnson (Belmont, 2008-11) - 1,558
7. Lindsay Cleveland (Belmont, 2002-05) - 1,552
8. Jewell Dobson (Lipscomb, 2011-15) - 1,525
9. Amanda Carroll (FGCU, 2015-present) - 1,450
10. Katie Plummer (Mercer, 2001-04) - 1,390
Total Blocks
1. Meredith Hardy (ETSU, 2010-13) - 474.0
2. Daniele Serrano (FGCU, 2016-present) - 443.0
3. Morgan Van Alstine (North Florida, 2013-16) - 435.0
4. Rachel Templin (Campbell, 2003-06) - 422.0
5. Danielle Neville (Jacksonville, 2002-05) - 408.0
Fall Sports Single-Game, Season and Group Tickets On Sale
Single game tickets for volleyball, men's soccer and women's soccer are on sale now. Prices are $7 for adults and $5 for military/veterans (with ID) and youth (age 15 and under).
For all inquiries, you can visit FGCUtickets.com, call 239-590-7145 or stop by the ticket office, which is open daily Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and one hour prior to all home events.
COACH BOTSFORD
Matt Botsford is in his sixth season as head coach of the FGCU women's volleyball program in 2019 after being hired on Feb. 10, 2014. In his tenure, Botsford-led teams have compiled a 137-48 (.741) record overall, including a 67-16 (.807) record in ASUN play. Including this past season, he has taken the program to heights it has not seen in the Division-I era (2007-present) – registering at least 20 wins overall in four straight seasons and at least 10 wins in conference play five straight seasons. Furthermore, the team's offensive efficiency has drastically improved since Botsford started. In his first two seasons, his squad produced hitting percentages of .212 and .220. The next two, which saw .267 and .256 percentages, are the third and fourth highest in program history. In 2018, he led the program to its first regular season championship since 2012 (fourth overall) and its first-ever ASUN tournament title, NCAA tournament appearance, NCAA tournament win and victory over a ranked team. His first two campaigns resulted in ASUN regular season runner-up finishes, and the following two saw the Eagles advance to the tournament championship. On Sept. 10, 2016, Botsford led his team to a five-set win over Indiana in Alico Arena, which signified the program's first-ever win over a team from a Power-5 conference. This past season, he led the team to a win over Miami (Fla.) - the program's first-ever road Power-5 win.
#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events in November and April 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 raise awareness.
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 79 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 12 plus seasons at the Division-I level. Additionally, in just eight plus seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 36 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Seven FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport – including both men's and women's soccer again in 2018. In 2016-17, the Green and Blue posted a department-best sixth-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. In 2018-19, the Eagles had an ASUN and state of Florida best seven teams earn the NCAA's Public Recognition Award for their Academic Progress Rate in their sport. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.35 GPA in the classroom in the spring 2018 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for twenty consecutive semesters. The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours in 2017 – being recognized as one of two runners-up for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl.
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