MIAMI (March 6, 2014) – The ninth-ranked FIU sand volleyball team will open the program's second compeitive season this weekend in Jacksonville, Fla. The Panthers will take on 2013 Atlantic Sun Conference Champions Jacksonville University on Friday, March 7, before traveling a couple miles south for the UNF Sand Invitational on Saturday, March 8 and Sunday, March 9.
Under the direction of second-year Head Coach Rita Buck-Crockett, FIU boasts a talented roster of 23 student-athletes, including 11 Florida natives. The Panthers earned a No. 9 ranking in the AVCA Collegiate Sand Volleyball Preseason Poll.
"The team has worked hard and are ready to compete," Buck Crockett said. "After getting ranked ninth out of the Top 10 in the country in the Coaches' Preseason Poll, we are hungry to start our journey to the National Championship. It will be a tough road, but we are definitely up for the challenge."
On Saturday, FIU will travel to St. Augustine Beach, Fla. for a 9:30 a.m. ET match against No. 4 Florida State and then a 2:30 p.m. ET matchup against Louisiana-Monroe. The following day the Panthers will take on Georgia State at 8:30 a.m. ET and South Carolina at 12:30 p.m. ET.
For more information about the UNF Sand Volleyball Invitational, please click HERE.
FIU will remain on the road for one tournament next week, as the Panthers travel to Atlanta for Georgia State's Tournament on Monday, March 10. First serve is set for 6 p.m. against UAB.
Fans are encouraged to follow the Panthers on Twitter (@FIUVolleyball) and become a fan on Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUVolleyball) for all the latest FIU volleyball news. Follow all of FIU's 18 athletic teams on Google+ (FIU Athletics), Twitter (@FIUAthletics), Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUSports), YouTube (FIUPanthers), and Instagram (FIUathletics). The official hashtag of the 2013-14 FIU athletic season is PantherNation.
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/.
