COLUMBIA, S.C. – The FGCU beach volleyball team (14-14, 6-4 ASUN Conference) delivered back-to-back 4-1 victories Saturday on the second day of the Palmetto Invitational. The Eagles defeated in-state rival Jacksonville (12-20), and triumphed over Coastal Carolina (21-11, 5-3 SBC).  
 
"It was a great last day to our regular season," said FGCU head beach volleyball coach Chris Sweat. "Jacksonville is much improved in all facets of the game, and made us work for every point. Coastal also made us earn each set, and really pushed us in our serve receive. We are looking forward to a great week of practice to get ready for the conference tournament."

FGCU took control early against the Dolphins, as freshman Kristina Gluc (Kissimmee, Fla./Osceola Virtual) and sophomore Jacqueline Carpenter (Dublin, Ohio. /Dublin Jerome) earned a 21-17, 21-11 victory at No. 4.
 
Sophomores Kaitlyn Luebbers (Union, Ky./Randall K. Cooper) and  Mia Thompson (Latana, Texas/Guyer HS) added another point for the Green & Blue as they rallied to win 21-13, 23-25, 19-17 at No. 5. 
 
Senior Shelby Beisner (Port Charlotte, Fla/Charlotte) and junior Trinity Rosales (Wilmington, N.C./Eugene Ashley) clinched the match with a 21-15, 21-15 victory at No. 2.
 
The Green & Blue's No. 3 pair of freshman Nicole De Oliveira (Cary, N.C./ Green Level HS) and graduate Lexie Hamilton (Naples, Fla./Barron Collier HS/UNCW) delivered a 21-12, 16-21, 15-13 victory to add the Eagles final point against JU.
 
In the second match against the Chanticleers, the Carpenter/Gluc duo rallied to win 19-21, 21-11, 15-13 at No. 5. Beisner and Rosales dominated at No. 2, winning 21-17, 21-12.
 
FGCU's No. 1 pair of juniors Kacie Johnson (Frisco, Texas/ Lebanon Trail) and Maddison Parmelly (Rockwall, Texas/Rockwall Health) clinched the match with a 21-12, 21-15 victory. 
 
De Oliveira and freshman Dylan Brewer (Lantana, Texas/John H. Guyer HS) closed out the match with a 21-17, 21-14 decision at No. 3.
 
The Eagles will turn their attention to the ASUN Tournament that will take place from April 21-23 in Jacksonville, Fla. 
 
FGCU 4, Jacksonville 1
1. Emily Kubicsko/Jenna McNamara (JAX) def. Maddison Parmelly/Kacie Johnson (FGCU) 24-22, 21-16
2. Shelby Beisner/Trinity Rosales (FGCU) def. Kristina Nika/Cameron Knifton (JAX) 21-15, 21-15
3. Nicole De Oliveira/Lexie Hamilton (FGCU) def. Sydney Eckhardt/Olivia Szyszkiewicz (JAX) 21-12, 16-21, 15-13
4. Jacqueline Carpenter/Kristina Gluc (FGCU) def. Katie Martinez/Haley Hart (JAX) 21-17, 21-11
5. Kaitlyn Luebbers/Mia Thompson (FGCU) def. Anna Dunbar/Colleen Ziegelmaier (JAX) 21-13, 23-25, 19-17
 
Order of Finish: 4, 5, 1, 2, 3

FGCU 4, Coastal Carolina 1
1. Maddison Parmelly/Kacie Johnson (FGCU) def. Martine Kragholm/Sarah Riedell (CCU) 21-12, 21-15
2. Shelby Beisner/Trinity Rosales (FGCU) def. Sarlota Svobodova/Madie Lichty (CCU) 21-17, 21-12
3. Dylan Brewer/Nicole De Oliveira (FGCU) def. Raychel Ehlers/Madison Allred (CCU) 21-17, 16-21, 15-12
4. Ellie Hanford/Emma Kunaus (CCU) def. Kaitlyn Luebbers/Lexie Hamilton (FGCU) 21-19, 19-21, 15-12
5. Jacqueline Carpenter/Kristina Gluc (FGCU) def. Elena Sanchez/Emma Gonzalez (CCU) 19-21, 21-11, 15-13
Ext. Lily Felts/Mia Thompson (FGCU) vs. Sydney Schwanbeck/Celia Ryan (CCU) 23-21, 18-21, unfinished

Order of Finish: 5, 4, 2, 1 ,3
 
For complete coverage of the FGCU 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 www.fgcuathletics.com/email.
 
COACH SWEAT
Chris Sweat's 2022 team finished with a program-high 29 wins, and Sweat earned his 50th career victory in just his third season as coach. Sweat became the first coach in FGCU program history to earn ASUN Coach of the Year accolade after guiding his team to its 11th-consecutive appearance in the ASUN Championship. The Eagles earned wins over two top-25 teams in 2022, downing No. 17 Stetson and No. 18 South Carolina while also taking down seven different conference squads. Sweat's FGCU program again ascended to a No. 20 ranking in the AVCA Top 20 in March 2022 and maintained that ranking through the ASUN Tournament. He is in his fourth 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 66-40 (.622) record
 
#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 97 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 15-plus seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just 11-plus seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 48 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. In 2022, the men's golf team became the first program to earn an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament. Nine FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport - including women's basketball (No. 20 in 2021-22 and No. 22 in 2022-23), baseball (No. 15 in 2023), beach volleyball (No. 20, 2022), and both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as five of the most recent. In 2016-17, the Green & 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 3.67 GPA in the classroom in the fall 2022 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 27 consecutive semesters. The past seven semesters (Fall 2019 – Fall 2022) saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher cumulative 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. 
 
---FGCUATHLETICS.COM---