FORT MYERS, Fla. – Florida Gulf Coast beach volleyball (17-12) will play its final tournament of the regular season at the Gulf Front Invitational on April 17 and 18.

FGCU is set to face off with host USF and No. 5 Florida State on Friday before taking on No. 13 LSU and Mercer on Saturday. South Florida will host the tournament in Clearwater on Clearwater Beach. The Eagles are three wins away from back-to-back 20-win seasons for the first time in program history.

The Bulls and Eagles met earlier in 2026 in Tallahassee. FGCU took a 3-0 win, played to clinch with impending weather in the area. Nicole De Oliveira & Erin Miller, Andrea Dietz & Sydney Majick and Kaitlyn Beck & Emma Soncrant all won in two sets to deliver FGCU the victory. On the season, South Florida is 18-10 with wins over Coastal Carolina, Mercer and North Alabama. FGCU's win earlier in 2026 was the first-ever meeting between the two squads.

No. 5 Florida State enters with a sterling 25-2 record. The Seminoles' only losses were to No. 7 TCU and No. 8 LMU; FSU avenged both defeats and has since beaten TCU twice and Loyola Marymount once. The Eagles and Seminoles didn't meet at the Unconquered Invitational in Tallahassee earlier this year and will play for the first time in 2026. Florida State leads the all-time series with FGCU 7-0.

FGCU will look to earn its first win in program history over No. 13 LSU. The Tigers are 3-0 in the all-time series with the Eagles, and won 3-2 in 2025. Alexis Keeter and Ava Lilliquist earned a 21-16, 22-20 pair win for the Eagles in the 2025 matchup. Emma Soncrant earned FGCU's other win, 13-21, 21-19, 17-15 with Jaci Carpenter. Saturday will be the first time FGCU and LSU have met in the state of Florida since 2014. The Tigers are 17-13 in 2026 and swept their home tournament last weekend. 

Mercer comes into the Gulf Front Invitational at 4-24. The Bears' lone Division I win in 2026 was over College of Charleston in February. FGCU leads the all-time series with Mercer 18-7 and has won 12 straight matches since 2017. Additionally, the Eagles haven't dropped a pair to the Bears since 2021, with five consecutive sweeps and sweeps in six of the last seven matches. 

For more information on FGCU beach volleyball, follow @FGCU_BeachVB on Instagram, X (Twitter) and Facebook, and visit fgcuathletics.com.