FORT MYERS, Fla. – Florida Gulf Coast beach volleyball (13-8) will make its farthest trip west in program history when it travels to Arizona for the Wildcat Spring Challenge, beginning on Friday against No. 14 Hawaii.

FGCU will also face the host (RV) Arizona, No. 18 South Carolina and Division II powerhouse Colorado Mesa over the course of the weekend.

Hawaii enters the weekend at 11-10. The Rainbow Warriors' slate is highlighted by a 3-2 win over No. 1 UCLA; nine of Hawaii's losses are to ranked opponents. The Eagles are 0-1 against the Rainbow Warriors in program history, and the two squads will meet for the first time since 2018.

FGCU will play Arizona for the first time in program history in its farthest trip west in program history. The Eagles' previous farthest trip away from home was to Fort Worth, Texas. The Wildcats are 15-7 with ranked wins over Georgia State and Grand Canyon.

It will be the second time the Eagles and Gamecocks have faced off in 2026. In the first meeting, FGCU upset South Carolina in the opening weekend of the season 3-2. Alexis Keeter and Ava Lilliquist rallied after losing the opening set to win 25-27, 21-17, 16-14 to give the Eagles the match with the comeback victory. Since, South Carolina has posted a 14-5 season record, with a ranked win over Arizona State.

The matchup against Colorado Mesa will be FGCU's first matchup with the Mavericks in any sport. Colorado Mesa is 14-4, with all four losses coming against Division I opponents the first week of the season. The Mavericks did tally a pair of Division I wins against Tennessee Tech, and are 12-0 against non-Division I opponents.

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