MIAMI BEACH, Fla. (April 2, 2016) – The tenth-ranked FIU beach volleyball team (9-7, 5-3 CCSA) split Day Two of the FIU Surf & Turf Invitational, falling to No. 2 USC, 5-0, but defeating rival No. 8 Georgia State, 3-2.
 
Day Two at Lummus Park began with a loss at the hands of the Trojans of USC. The Panthers were swept, falling in straight sets in all of their matches. In the first-ever meeting between the two programs, FIU was outplayed by the defending national champions.
 
Preceding the match against Georgia State, FIU recognized the seven student-athletes which played their final game today in Miami, Florida: Emily Podschweit, Anne Marie Taylor, Gloria Levorin, Savannah Davis, Aren Cupp, Martyna Gluchowicz, and Tina Toghiyani. The combination of those players have given FIU a total of 48 victories over the last three seasons, heading into the afternoon match.
 
Against the No. 8 Panthers of Georgia State, Head Coach Rita Buck-Crockett made a bold lineup change which proved to take GSU by surprise. FIU recorded the 3-2 victory in one of the shortest duals of the season, time wise. The Panthers got their first point at the No. 4 position, where the classic duo of Toghiyani and Cupp took GSU by storm, defeating them 21-8, 21-11. Almost instantly after, Gluchowicz and junior Marina Boulanger claimed the 21-13, 21-15 victory on Court 1. Within seconds, FIU clinched the match with Davis and sophomore Natalia Giron winning at the No. 5 slot, 21-14, 21-19.
 
The victory against Georgia State is the first against a ranked opponent this season. FIU improves to 4-2 in the all-time series against the bitter rivals.
 
FIU ended the Surf & Turf Invitational with a record of 4-1, having all their victories against conference opponents. The victories put the Panthers in the best position to receive the wildcard spot at the 2016 NCAA National Championships in May.
 
FIU will be back in action Saturday, April 9 to wrap up their regular season. The Panthers will play TCU at 10:00 a.m. and Grand Canyon at 3:00 p.m. Both matches will be played at Siesta Key, Florida.
 
(#2) USC def. (#10) FIU, 5-0
 
No. 1 Claes/Hughes (USC) def. Dodd/Hogan (FIU); 21-9, 21-9
No. 2 Bukovec/Strange (USC) def. Gluchowicz/Boulanger (FIU); 21-14, 21-17
No. 3 Martin/Wheeler (USC) def. Cupp/Peterson (FIU); 21-16, 21-15
No. 4 Bustamante/Belton (USC) def. Toghiyani/Bethancourt (FIU); 21-12, 21-12
No. 5 Kernochan/Cannon (USC) def. Davis/Giron (FIU); 21-14, 22-20
 
Order of finish: 4, 1, 2, 3, 5
 
(#10) FIU def. (#8) GSU, 3-2
 
No. 1 Gluchowicz/Boulanger (FIU) def. Button/Olivova (GSU); 21-13, 21-15
No. 2 Rawls/Interwies (GSU) def. Dodd/Hogan (FIU); 21-14, 21-17
No. 3 Rohan/Pickering (GSU) def. Bethancourt/Peterson (FIU); 26-24, 21-18
No. 4 Cupp/Toghiyani (FIU) def. Wilson/Weiner (GSU); 21-8, 21-11
No. 5 Davis/Giron (FIU) def. Fourspring/Elmurr (GSU); 21-14, 21-19

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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 180bachelor'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, theWolfsonian-FIU, and the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU. FIU is a member of Conference USA andhas over 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.