MIAMI (April 19, 2018) – The No. 10-ranked FIU beach volleyball team will get back on the sand this Friday, April 20, as the Panthers face the College of Charleston (CoC) on the first day of the Coastal Collegiate Sports Association Tournament in Emerson, Georgia. First serve at the Lakepoint Sporting Community is slated for 10:30 a.m. FIU comes into the three-day event as the No. 3 seed, while the Cougars are the No. 7 seed.  

FIUSports.com had a chance to catch up with Head Coach Rita Buck-Crockett, along with Taija Thomas and Dorina Klinger about the upcoming CCSA Conference Tournament. Click here to see the complete video.
 
Each team will play four pool play matches, with matches beginning on Friday, April 20, at 9 a.m. The top-two teams in each pool will advance to Sunday's semifinal round. The 2018 CCSA Championship Final will be played on Sunday, April 22, at 1 p.m. 
 
Pool A consists of No. 1 Florida State, No. 4 LSU, No. 5 Georgia State, No. 8 Florida Atlantic and No. 9 UNCW. In Pool B, No. 2 South Carolina is joined by FIU, No. 6 Tulane, No. 7 College of Charleston and No. 10 UAB. 
 
Following Friday's match against CoC, the Panthers will face the six-seed, Tulane, in their final match of the day at 3 p.m. FIU closes out pool play on Saturday, April 21, against the two-seed, South Carolina, at 12 p.m., and then the 10-seed, UAB, at 3 p.m. 
 
The Panthers, who come into this weekend with a 20-8 record and a 7-3 slate in CCSA play this year, closed out the regular season, last weekend, with commanding back-to-back dual wins over UAB, 5-0 on April 13, and 4-1 on April 14.  
 
FIU continues to remain almost unbeatable at the No. 1 and No. 5 positions. The top duo of Federica Frasca and Margherita Bianchin are 24-4 at the No. 1 spot, while five pairs – Erin Byrne/Mariana Dal Pozzo (4-1), Dal Pozzo/Taija Thomas (15-4), Dal Pozzo/Mariana DePaula Silva (0-1), Erin Byrne and Mackenzie Walker (1-0), and Estefanie Bethancourt and Natalia Giron (2-0) – have combined for a record of 22-6 at No. 5. Bethancourt and Giron have also been impressive at the No. 4 position, boasting an impressive 17-7 record on the year. Four FIU pairs find themselves in the Collegebeachvb.com national rankings – Federica Frasca and Margherita Bianchin are No. 5 at the No. 1 position, Lina Bernier and Madison Besterfield are No. 10 at the No. 3 spot, Natalia Giron and Estefanie Bethancourt are No. 14 at the No. 4 position, and Mariana Dal Pozzo and Taija Thomas are No. 16 at the No. 5 spot.
 
The No. 3 seed ties the Panthers' highest seeding in CCSA Championship history. FIU is 4-4 all-time in the CCSA Tournament, and advanced to the tournament championship match last year against Florida State. The Seminoles have won the only two CCSA Tournament titles.
 
Friday's meeting with the College of Charleston will be the first against the Cougars in the postseason for the Panthers. All-time in the CCSA Tournament, FIU has faced: Florida Atlantic (1-0), Florida State (0-2), Georgia State (0-1), LSU (1-0), UNCW (1-0), South Carolina (0-1), and Tulane (1-0).   
 
Eleven Sports USA became a broadcasting partner for this year's Championship and is scheduled to broadcast both semifinals and the final on Sunday live. Broadcast information will be announced late this week.
 
 
2018 CCSA Tournament Schedule
 
Friday, April 20
 
9:00 AM
Match 1 – Florida State vs. UNCW - Courts 1-5
Match 2 – South Carolina vs. UAB - Courts 6-10
 
10:30 AM
Match 3 – LSU vs. Georgia State - Courts 1-5
Match 4 - FIU vs. College of Charleston - Courts 6-10
 
12:00 PM
Match 5 – Florida State vs. Florida Atlantic - Courts 1-5
Match 6 - South Carolina vs. Tulane - Courts 6-10
 
1:30 PM
Match 7 – LSU vs. UNCW - Courts 1-5
Match 8 - College of Charleston vs. UAB - Courts 6-10
 
3:00 PM
 
Match 9 – Georgia State vs. Florida Atlantic - Courts 1-5
Match 10 - FIU vs. Tulane - Courts 6-10
 
Saturday, April 21
 
9:00 AM
Match 11 - South Carolina vs. College of Charleston - Courts 1-5
Match 12 - Florida State vs. LSU - Courts 6-10
 
10:30 AM
 
Match 13 – Tulane vs. UAB - Courts 1-5
Match 14 - Florida Atlantic vs. UNCW - Courts 6-10
 
12:00 PM
Match 15 - South Carolina vs. FIU - Courts 1-5
Match 16 - Florida State vs. Georgia State - Courts 6-10
 
1:30 PM
Match 17 - Tulane vs. College of Charleston - Courts 1-5
Match 18 - LSU vs. Florida Atlantic - Courts 6-10
 
3:00 PM
Match 19 - FIU vs. UAB - Courts 1-5
Match 20 - Georgia State vs. UNCW - Courts 6-10
 
Sunday, April 22
 
9:00 AM
Semifinal 1 - Group 1 #1 vs. Group 2 #2 - Courts 1-5
 
10:30 AM
Semifinal 2 - Group 2 #1 vs. Group 1 #2 - Courts 6-10
 
1:00 PM
Championship Match - Winner Semifinal 1 vs. Winner Semifinal 2 - Courts 5-9
 
 
Awards Ceremony will follow immediately after the Championship Match
 
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