Photo credit: Alex Hernandez

BOX SCORE (PDF) / CUMULATIVE STATISTICS (PDF)

TROY, Ala. (Sept. 28, 2012) – The FIU volleyball squad fell to Sun Belt Conference foe Troy, 3-1 (25-20, 20-25, 17-25, 23-25), on Friday night at Sartain Hall in Troy, Ala. With the loss, the Panthers fall to 4-11 overall and 1-2 in league action, while the Trojans improve to 10-7 overall and 2-1 in SBC play.

Set one was a battle until FIU ran out to a six-point lead at 19-13. A Panther attack error made it 19-14 and the teams traded points on two occasions to put the score at 21-16. Troy would then tally two-straight points, bringing up a 21-18 score and forcing an FIU timeout.

Out of the break, the Trojans cut the deficit to two at 21-19 and a kill by redshirt senior Renele Forde put the gap back to three at 22-19. A Panther service error made it 22-20, but the Trojans wouldn't manage another point, as FIU rattled off three-consecutive points to take set one, 25-20, going ahead 1-0 for the match.

In set two, Troy took a 21-17 lead before senior Ryanne Milligan passed to junior Kimberly Smith for a kill to put the score at 21-18. The Trojans would then post three-straight points to bring up set-point at 24-18, but FIU would not go away. A kill by sophomore Silvia Carli and a service ace by freshman Lucia Castro brought the Panthers to within four at 24-20 before a final Troy kill gave the Trojans a 25-20 set win, knotting the match at 1-1.

Set three saw Troy go ahead, 21-15, before back-to-back kills from senior Marija Prsa put the score at 21-17. The Trojans, however, would go on to score four-consecutive points to take a 2-1 match lead, by way of a 25-17 set victory.

In the fourth stanza, Troy jumped out to an 11-4 advantage and FIU went on a 9-2 run to tie the score at 13-13. The two squads battled back and forth to a 17-17 tie before the Trojans went on a run of their own, registering five-straight points to go ahead, 22-17. A kill by freshman Gloria Levorin and a pair of Troy attack errors would then bring FIU to within two at 22-20, forcing a Trojan timeout.

Out of the break, the teams traded kills to put the score at 23-21 and another Troy score put the Trojans in match-point position at 24-21. An attack error and a kill by Smith brought FIU to within one at 24-23, but a Troy kill ended the match, as the Trojans came away with a 25-23 set win and a 3-1 match victory.

Prsa and Smith led the FIU offense with 13 and 11 kills, respectively, while Milligan registered a team-leading and career-high 20 assists, and Castro posted a squad-best three service aces.

Defensively, Carli recorded a team-high seven blocks and Smith chipped in with six stops, as FIU out-blocked Troy, 13.0-8.5, for the match. Sophomore Carolyn Fouts tallied a career-high and team-best 22 digs on the night.

FIU will return to action on Sunday, Sept. 28, when the Panthers travel to Mobile, Ala., for a Sun Belt Conference matchup with the South Alabama Jaguars. First serve is set for 2 p.m. ET.

About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports, and is a proud member of the Sun Belt Conference and an affiliate member of Conference USA (men's soccer). Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including U.S. Century Bank Arena and Alfonso Field at FIU Stadium.

About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. Its colleges and schools 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 is worlds ahead in its local and global engagement, finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission and enrolls nearly 48,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. More than 140,000 alumni live and work in South Florida. FIU is a member of the Sun Belt Conference and has 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.

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