ESTERO, Fla. - The FGCU beach volleyball team (4-4) moved back to .500 with a pair of victories (4-1, 5-0) over Eckerd College (1-14) in the home opener at Estero Community Park on Wednesday.
 
"It was nice," FGCU head coach Matt Botsford said. "I wish the weather would have cooperated a little more. We started to get some people out here, and I think they got chased out by the rain. It's always nice to play close to home - not having to travel, sleeping in your own bed - it always plays a role."

Karissa Rhoades picked up two more wins alongside Katherine Puisis to tie the program's all-time wins record with 46. Puisis (Mason, Ohio/William Mason HS) also has 42 wins as the duo is on pace to finish top two in career victories and winning percentage.

Career Wins
46 - Karissa Rhoades (2016-present, 46-30, .605)
46 - Madi Wilcox (2014-17, 46-32)
42 - Katherine Puisis (2016-present, 42-27, .609)
38 - Mackenzie Allen (2015-18, 38-44, .463)
38 - Ashley Glickert (2015-18, 38-45, .458)

"Karissa is such a great talent and has been so consistent since the start of her beach career here at FGCU," Botsford said. "It's exciting to see her reach this benchmark. She has such a great feel for the game and understands how to manage match-ups to put herself and her teammates in really good situations. Karissa is among the most well-rounded players I have coached and those skills have served her extremely well in that march to the wins record."

Not only did the duo win all four sets on Wednesday, but Rhoades (Valrico, Fla./Bloomingdale Senior HS) and Puisis did so in dominating fashion by holding Eckerd to single digits in three of the four, including just three in the second set of the finale.

Three other pairs also swept the day in just four sets apiece - Amanda Carroll and Kirstine Garder at No. 1, Kayla Whetstone and Snowy Burnam at No. 3 and Cortney VanLiew and Emma Hansen at No. 5.

Whetstone (Arlington, Texas/Arlington Lamar HS) and Burnam (Palm City, Fla./Jensen Beach HS) improved to a team-best 6-2 this year and both now have 22 career victories, which ties them for 9th-most in program history.
 
Carroll (Albuquerque, N.M./Sandia HS) pushed her career win total to 36 as she sits just outside the top five. Her senior-freshman pairing with Garder (Halden, Norway/Topvolley Norge) has now netted four victories in eight matches this year.

Giovanna Borgiotti (Vienna, Va./George C. Marshall HS) and Candace Lacour (Buckeye, Ariz./Verrado HS) bounced back from a loss in today's first match to produce a 21-17, 21-17 victory in the finale and improve to 4-4 on the season.

Hansen (Trophy Club, Texas/Westlake Academy) improved to 3-0 on the season while teaming with VanLiew (Seymour, Ind./Columbus East HS).

The Eagles will now head to UNCW's Dig and Dive Beach Bash in Wilmington, N.C. on Saturday and Sunday where they will face Coastal Carolina, UNC Wilmington, College of Charleston and Tusculum College.

"I think we're getting an awful lot of really good performances over the past couple weeks, and that includes some of the matches we've lost, but just in terms of the quality of play, I feel good about it," Botsford said. "But everyone 1-5 has had moments of inconsistency, which is what we're most concerned about. We have to play more effectively for longer periods of time and that's going to be a challenge heading into the weekend. If we can do that, I think our upside is really high."

SERIES HISTORY
FGCU is now 6-1 all-time against Eckerd dating back to April 1, 2015. The Eagles six wins have featured just three pair losses. Rhoades and Carroll are both 5-1 in their careers against Eckerd.

Results
FGCU 4, Eckerd 1
1. Carroll/Garder (FGCU) d. Bogda/Machovec 21-12, 21-15
2. Rhoades/Puisis (FGCU) d. Erillo/O'Ferrell 21-17, 21-9
3. Whetstone/Burnam (FGCU) d. Harris/Case 21-14, 21-10
4. Reis/Crankshaw (Eckerd) d. Borgiotti/Lacour 21-17, 21-17
5. VanLiew/Hansen (FGCU) d. Andrews/Meader 21-18, 21-14
 
FGCU 5, Eckerd 0
1. Carroll/Garder d. Bogda/Machovec 22-20, 21-11
2. Rhoades/Puisis d. Harris/Case 21-9, 21-3
3. Whetstone/Burnam d. Erillo/O'Ferrell 21-12, 21-8
4. Borgiotti/Lacour d. Reis/Crankshaw 21-17, 21-17
5. VanLiew/Hansen d. Andrews/Meader 21-14, 21-19
 
FOLLOW ALONG
For up-to-the minute information and a behind-the-scenes look at the FGCU beach volleyball program, follow on Twitter at @FGCU_BeachVB, on Facebook at /FGCUVolleyball and on Instagram at @FGCU_BeachVB.

COACH BOTSFORD 
Head coach Matt Botsford, who is also the head coach of the FGCU indoor volleyball program, is in his sixth season at the helm of the FGCU beach volleyball program in 2019. He has compiled a 45-32 record over the past three-plus seasons (51-61 overall) while improving or steadying the team's win total each season. In fact, he led the program to 11 wins in 2016, 15 in 2017 and 15 more in 2018 - all three of which either tied or set new records for most wins in a season. The beach volleyball program is in just its eighth season in 2019 and has an overall record of 60-76. 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.

#FEEDFGCU
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 raise awareness.
 
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 75 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 11+ seasons at the Division-I level. Additionally, in just seven+ seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 35 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 6th-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.35 GPA in the classroom in the Spring, 2018 and had an ASUN Conference and State of Florida best five teams earn the NCAA's Public Recognition Award for their Academic Progress Rate in their sport.  The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours – being recognized as one of two runners-up for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl.