GULF SHORES, Ala. (May 2, 2015) – It was a historic weekend for the third-ranked FIU sand volleyball program as the Panthers finished the season as one of the top four teams in the country, finishing the year 20-3.
After earning the program's first win in the opening round, the Panthers worked their way out of the losers' bracket making it to the final four before falling this afternoon to No. 4 Pepperdine.
"There is nothing to hang our heads about," said head coach
Rita Buck-Crockett. "We came out here and competed until the very end. We are a final four team. We are one of the best four teams in the country. I am extremely proud of each and every one of our girls. We had an incredible season."
The Panthers completed their historic year after accumulating a school record of 20-3 (.870) and defeating five AVCA top 10 opponents.
The fourth match in two days, FIU fell behind early after suffering losses at the No. 3 and No. 1 flights. The Waves sealed the deal as the No. 2 pair of senior
Summer Nash and sophomore
Savannah Davis fell in a close 21-18, 21-16 match. The Panthers' one win came at the No. 4 position as seniors
Martyna Gluchowicz and
Anna Budinska picked up a 21-16, 21-13 victory. The duo finished Nationals undefeated, winning all matches in straight sets.
There will be a pairs play-in match this afternoon at 4 p.m. ET for FIU's No. 2 team to enter the pairs tournament. The opponent will be determined following the pairs pool play currently taking place. The No. 1 team of freshman
Anja Licka and senior
Maryna Samoday automatically will be entered in the pairs bracket which takes place tomorrow.
For all the scores and results, click
HERE AVCA National Championships Quarterfinals Results No. 1 Kelley Larsen/Kellie Woolever (PEP) def.
Maryna Samoday/
Anja Licka (FIU) 21-10, 21-17
No. 2 Laura Dykstra/Becca Strehlow (PEP) def.
Summer Nash/
Savannah Davis (FIU) 21-18, 21-16
No. 3 Emily Cook/Delaney Knudsen (PEP) def.
Darija Sataric/
Marina Boulanger (FIU) 21-14, 21-9
No. 4
Martyna Gluchowicz/
Anna Budinska (FIU) def. Sophie Asprey/Taylor Racich (PEP) 21-16, 21-13
No. 5 Samantha Cash/Corinne Quiggle (FIU) def.
Alex Johnson/Tina Toghiyani (FIU) 21-17, 19-21, 15-11
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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 BankField 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/.
