MIAMI (October 9, 2016) – The FIU volleyball team (7-11, 1-3 in C-USA) fell to Rice (12-7, 4-0 in C-USA) in a very close match, 3-0 (25-22, 25-23, 26-24), on Sunday afternoon. With the loss, the Panthers fall to 1-3 in Conference USA play.
 
The Panthers were led by senior Katie Hogan and junior Tia Clay with 13 and 10 kills, respectively. With last game's 12 kills, this marked the first time in Clay's career she posted double-digit kills in back-to-back games.
 
FIU came out with tremendous energy, helped by the FIU football team, who cheered on the Panthers. The first set went the way of the Owls, 25-22, led by Hogan with five kills. Junior Jennifer Ene claimed four kills of her own, hitting .500 in the first set. The Panthers outhit Rice, .186-.176, but came up just short.
 
The Panthers came out with the same intensity in the second set, but tailed off at the very end to drop the set, 25-23 and give Rice a 2-0 lead. Hogan, along with junior Taija Thomas led the offense with four kills apiece. For the set, FIU once again outhit the Owls, .217-.205.
 
Determined to come back, FIU led the majority of the third set, but ultimately lost 26-24. The Panthers hit their best percentage in the third set (.333). Hogan, Clay and Thomas each contributed four kills in the final set.
 
On the match, FIU hit a respectable .240 percentage and led the Owls in most categories. Freshman Sophia Sires broke her career-high of 40 assists, set last game against UAB with 43 in her fourth start of the season. Defensively, the charge was led by redshirt freshman Lina Bernier with 15 digs, one shy of her season high and two shy of her career high.
 
Due to Hurricane Matthew, the match between FIU and Marshall was postponed last Friday, October 7. That match will be played on Tuesday, October 11 in Huntington, West Virginia. First serve from Cam Henderson Center is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. (ET). Live stats and video streaming will be available on FIUSports.com.

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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).
 
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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 offers 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 $9.8 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/.