ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (March 24, 2017) – The No. 16-ranked FIU beach volleyball team (11-6, 5-2 in CCSA) wrapped up day one at the Eckerd College "Battle on the Bay" Tournament with an impressive 2-0 sweep. The Panthers dominated play on Friday with two consecutive victories over Morehead State, 5-0, and Huntingdon, 5-0.
In the Panther's first dual of the day, against the Eagle's in the early morning match, FIU did not surrender a game, marking its fifth shutout of the season.
In the second match of the morning, all five pairs defeated their respective Huntingdon opponents in a dominating two sets. Three out-of-five FIU pairs posted convincing wins, allowing just single-digit scores in both sets. The Panthers' No. 3 pair of
Federica Frasca and
Margherita Bianchin defeated the Hawk's Alex Hillman and Lexie DeVuyst, 21-2, 21-6, while the No. 4 tandem of
Estefanie Bethancourt and
Anabela Sataric finished off Huntingdon's Gabby Hughes and Devyn Stringer, 21-3, 21-5. In the No. 5 dual, FIU's
Lina Bernier and
Natalia Giron secured an impressive victory over Samm Mamon and Kaitlyn Carter, 21-2, 21-2.
The Panthers head into day two of the tournament tomorrow, Saturday, March 25, with an opening match set against Jacksonville State at 9:30 a.m. and finish the weekend with a dual against the host Tritons at 11:00 a.m.
Mar 24, 2017 at St. Petersburg, Fla. (Northshore Park)
FIU def. Morehead State, 5-0
No. 1
Katie Hogan/
Helene Thelle (FIU) def. Bailey Nichol/Sydney Schuler (MS) 21-8, 21-13
No. 2
Kari Peterson/
Taija Thomas (FIU) def. Jordan Jones/Hope Rillema (MS) 21-10, 21-8
No. 3
Estefanie Bethancourt/
Anabela Sataric (FIU) def. Liz Allen/Chandler Clark (MS) 21-8, 21-13
No. 4
Federica Frasca/
Margherita Bianchin (FIU) def. Maddie Fella/Danielle McCarson (MS) 21-5, 21-9
No. 5
Lina Bernier/
Natalia Giron (FIU) def. Alyssa Cecil/Karleee Reynolds (MS) 21-11, 21-4
FIU def. Huntingdon College, 5-0
No. 1
Katie Hogan/
Helene Thelle (FIU) def. Bria Rochelle/Alexis Creasman (HC) 21-11, 21-8
No. 2
Kari Peterson/
Taija Thomas (FIU) def. Shelby Young/Audrianna Hargett (HC) 21-12, 21-13
No. 3
Federica Frasca/
Margherita Bianchin (FIU) def. Alex Hillman/Lexie DeVuyst (HC) 21-2, 21-6
No. 4
Estefanie Bethancourt /
Anabela Sataric (FIU) def. Gabby Hughes/Devyn Stringer (HC) 21-3, 21-5
No. 5
Lina Bernier/
Natalia Giron (FIU) def. Samm Mamon/Kaitlyn Carter (HC) 21-2, 21-2
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About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports. Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including FIU Arena and Ocean Bank Field at FIU Stadium.
About FIU:
Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. It is a public research university with colleges and schools that offer more than 180 bachelor's, master's and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU contributes $8.9 billion each year to the local economy. FIU is Worlds Ahead in finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded over 200,000 degrees and enrolls more than 54,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell, FIU@I-75, and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU also supports artistic and cultural engagement through its three museums: the Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, the Wolfsonian-FIU, and the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has over 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.
