BOCA RATON, Fla. --- The No. 20 FGCU beach volleyball team (9-9) battled heavy winds on Friday at the FAU Beach Volleyball Complex en route to a pair of 3-2 losses to Tampa and Palm Beach Atlantic as part of the opening day of the FAU Sandy Owls Invitational.
"Today was a tough day in some tough conditions," FGCU head coach
Chris Sweat said. "We had our chances in both matches but our opponents did a great job of keeping us off balance and making us work for every point. Unfortunately, we came up just short. It's disappointing but tomorrow is a new day, and we'll be ready to get back to work."
In terms of positive news, the No. 2 duo of
Kayla Whetstone and
Kacie Johnson won both of their matches in straight sets. In doing so,
Whetstone (Arlington, Texas/Arlington Lamar HS) pushed her career win total to 56, which is now one shy of matching Katie Puisis (57, 2016-19) for second-most in program history. Meanwhile,
Johnson (Frisco, Texas/Lebanon Trail HS) helped the duo improve to 12-6 overall this year.
FGCU Career Wins
| 1. |
61 |
Karissa Rhoades |
2016-19 |
61-35 |
.635 |
| 2. |
57 |
Katie Puisis |
2016-19 |
57-32 |
.640 |
| 3. |
56 |
Kayla Whetstone |
2018-present |
56-21 |
.727 |
| 4. |
53 |
Giovanna Borgiotti |
2017-present |
53-45 |
.541 |
| 5. |
50 |
Amanda Carroll |
2016-19 |
50-42 |
.543 |
Giovanna Borgiotti went 1-1 on the day with
Kirstine Garder at the top pair. In doing so,
Borgiotti (Vienna, Va./George C. Marshall HS) improved to 53-45 in her career as she remains fourth all-time in career victories and is on track to become the first player in program history to compete in her 100th match on Saturday.
Garder (Halden, Norway/Topvolley Norge) moved within three wins of catapulting into the top 10 in career wins for FGCU. She currently sits at 27, which is three shy of Caroline Jordan (30, 2014-17).
The No. 5 duo of
Jenna Banz and
Trinity Rosales picked up the other win on the day for the Eagles at the No. 5 pair against Palm Beach Atlantic in straight sets.
Banz (Cambridge, Ontario/St. Benedict Catholic Secondary/Hawaii) is now one win shy of double-digits in an FGCU uniform.
The Eagles, who have dropped four straight matches in 3-2 fashion, will be back in action on Saturday against North Florida at 9 a.m. before closing things out against No. 11 FAU at 1 p.m.
Tampa 3, FGCU 2
1.
Giovanna Borgiotti/Kirstine Garder (FGCU) def. Rachel Rosequist/Julia Oswald 21-17, 21-16
2.
Kayla Whetstone/Kacie Johnson (FGCU) def. Melissa Elias/Valerie Rosequist 21-18, 24-22
3. Tatiana Gutierrez/Katie McKiel (UT) def.
Lexie Hamilton/Maddison Parmelly 21-19, 10-21, 15-12
4. Maddie Hart/Kiersten Anderson (UT) def.
Emma Hansen/Madie Lichty 20-22, 21-19, 15-10
5. Claire Overton/Payton Brunick (UT) def.
Jenna Banz/Trinity Rosales 9-21, 25-23, 15-13
Palm Beach Atlantic 3, FGCU 2
1. Jazz Schmidt/Lunden Evans (PBA) def.
Giovanna Borgiotti/Kirstine Garder 21-18, 22-20
2.
Kayla Whetstone/Kacie Johnson (FGCU) def. Abby Devido/Lyndzey Minter 21-18, 24-22
3. Emma Pieper/Olivia Finckel (PBA) def.
Maddison Parmelly/Lexie Hamilton 11-21, 23-21, 15-12
4. Jessica Nodell/Sydney Wagner (PBA) def.
Emma Hansen/Elizabeth Richmond 21-17, 17-21, 15-11
5.
Jenna Banz/Trinity Rosales (FGCU) def. Gabriella Aziz/Julia Golichowski 21-16, 21-18
For complete coverage of the beach volleyball program, follow the Eagles on Twitter and Instagram at @FGCU_BeachVB, on Facebook at /fgcubeachvb and online at FGCUathletics.com. You can also sign up to have news on FGCU beach volleyball or other programs delivered directly to your inbox by visiting
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COACH SWEAT
Chris Sweat is in his second season as head coach of the FGCU beach volleyball program after spending the prior five seasons as an assistant coach. A member of VolleyballMag.com's Under 40 Coaching Hotshots list in January 2020, he led the Eagles to a 4-0 start in 2020 prior to the Covid-19 shutdown and has compiled a 13-9 record to open his head coaching tenure.
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ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 85 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 13+ seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just nine seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 40 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 23 consecutive semesters. The 2019 Fall, 2020 Spring, and 2020 Fall semesters each saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher team GPA. 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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