FORT MYERS, Fla. – Erin Shomaker (Granville, Ohio/Granville HS) and Cortney VanLiew (Seymour, Ind./Columbus East HS) each posted double-doubles to lead the FGCU volleyball team to a 3-0 (28-26, 25-13, 25-17) win over Kennesaw State on Friday night at Alico Arena. The Eagles improved to 14-4 overall and stay unbeaten at 6-0 in ASUN play, while the Owls fell to 8-8 overall and 2-3 in league action.
 
Shomaker led all players with 13 kills while adding 11 digs and three blocks. VanLiew had 10 kills along with 15 digs. For VanLiew, the performance extended her program record for career kills (1,536) and while she remains eighth all-time in the record book for career digs (1,028). Shomaker now has 688 career kills putting her just 12 more from reaching the top-10 in program history.
 
Along with Shomaker and VanLiew, Juliana Lentz (Miami, Fla./St. Brendan HS) and Aja Jones (Venice, Fla./Venice HS) each provided a spark of both offense and defense. Lentz had nine kills to go with six blocks, while Jones had eight kills and three blocks.

"Kennesaw is a good team and we have a lot of respect for them. I'm obviously pleased with the win, but I'm most pleased with how we played defense after that slow start," said head coach Matt Botsford. "Neither Erin or Cortney started great, but I liked the way they fought through the tough stretches and I loved the way they were patrolling the back court when things weren't working right for them on the offensive side to find ways to contribute. The team blocking at the net was outstanding and I thought Aja and Juliana really took the lead there. A lot of our offensive success was very much related to what Aja and Juliana were doing in drawing blocks, getting up early, and posing as threats."
 
KSU was led by nine kills from Lauren Chastang and seven kills from Emma Schurfranz who also had seven blocks.
 
Offensively, FGCU held a 43-to-25 advantage in kills with the Owls stymied by 25 attack errors for the match. The result was a .229 hitting percentage for the Green and Blue while the Owls were held to .000 for the night.
 
The match saw both teams play a tightly fought first set which saw 11 ties and five lead changes. After a Chastang kill tied the match at 22-22 late, the teams traded the next two points each. An ace by Chastang put the Owls up 25-24 before a pair of kills from Shomaker put FGCU back up 26-25. KSU tied the match again at 26 each before another kill by Shomaker followed by a KSU attack error gave the Eagles the opening win of the night.
 
In the second set, the Eagles took control early before holding a 22-11 lead late in the game. A fire alarm in Alico Arena forced the suspension of the game and a brief evacuation of the facility. After a 30-minute pause and an all-clear, the teams resumed the match. The Owls scored the first two points after the restart, but kills by Jones and Shomaker followed by a Shomaker solo block put FGCU up 2-0.
 
FGCU continued its strong play in the third set building out a five-point lead midway through. A three-point run gave the Eagles a 22-14 lead before the Owls scored three of the next four. A KSU service error and then a kill by Lentz sealed the sweep for FGCU.
 
The Green and Blue will return to action on Sunday at 1 PM as FGCU hosts Liberty at Alico Arena. Tickets can be purchased online at www.FGCUTickets.com, by calling 866-FGCU-TIX, or at the arena on game day.
 

🗣️ @CoachBotsford on the win over KSU#TakingFlight 🤙🦅🌴 pic.twitter.com/VTSVH3Qm4U

— FGCU Volleyball (@FGCU_VB) October 9, 2021

 
Most Career Kills

1.	1,536	Cortney VanLiew (.227)	2017-present
2.	1,483	Amanda Carroll (.259)	2015-19
3.	1,173	Brooke Youngquist Sweat (.245)	2004-07
4.	1,132	Olivia Mesner (.331)	2011-14
5.	961	Jessica Barnes (.194)	2010-14

 
Most Career Digs 

1.	1,965	Whitney Hendry (390 sets)	2004-07
2.	1,748	Dana Axner (342 sets)	2018-present
3.	1,687	Whitney Masters (483 sets)	2011-14
4.	1,652	Holly Youngquist (418 sets)	2008-11
5.	1,369	Brook Youngquist Sweat (346 sets)	2004-07

 
 
For complete coverage of the volleyball program, follow the Eagles on Twitter at @FGCU_VB, on Instagram at @FGCU_VB, on Facebook at /FGCUVolleyball and online at FGCUathletics.com. You can also sign-up to have news on FGCU volleyball or other programs delivered directly to your inbox by visiting www.fgcuathletics.com/email.
 
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IT TAKES A TEAM to achieve our newest goal - a $10 million campaign to address student-athlete needs in continued academic success, life skills, mental health, nutrition, and strength and conditioning as well as departmental needs in facility expansion and improvement as well as mentoring and leadership training for coaches and staff. The name embodies our mission and the purpose of the E.A.G.L.E. Campaign - Eagle Athletics Generating Lifetime Excellence. Join Our Team and pledge your gift today to help the Eagles of tomorrow!

COACH BOTSFORD
Matt Botsford is in his eighth season as head coach of the FGCU women's volleyball program in 2021 after being hired on Feb. 10, 2014. In his tenure, Botsford-led teams have compiled a 170-56 (.753) record overall, including an 86-19 (.818) record in ASUN play. Including this past year's unprecedented spring 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 five of the past six seasons and at least 10 wins in conference play every season. 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 and now the team has won three straight regular season titles, including a division title and ASUN tournament runner-up finish in the spring 2021 season. 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. In 2018, he led the team to a win over Miami (Fla.) - the program's first-ever road Power 5 win, and the Eagles followed that up with a straight-set win over the Hurricanes at a neutral site in 2019.
 
#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 85 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 14+ seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just nine seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 42 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Eight FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport - including women's basketball (No. 21, 2020-21), beach volleyball (No. 20, 2021) and both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as three of the most recent. 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 3.50 GPA in the classroom in the fall 2020 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 24 consecutive semesters. The 2019 Fall, 2020 Spring, 2020 Fall, and 2021 Spring semesters each saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher team GPA in each. 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.
 
--FGCUATHLETICS.COM--