MIAMI (August 24, 2016) – The FIU volleyball team will kick off the regular season, hosting the FIU Invite, August 26-27. The team will open against Coastal Carolina on Friday, August 26 at 7 p.m. (ET) on Lime Court at FIU Arena, followed by Miami on Saturday (11:30 a.m.) and Florida A&M (7:00 p.m.).
"This weekend, we have some tough competition," said Head Coach
Rita Buck-Crockett. "But we are tough competition for the other teams as well. I think it's a great tournament. It is a high level tournament."
FIU will be led by sophomore
Jennifer Ene, who looks to move up in the record books this weekend. Ene is currently tied for fifth in career solo blocks with 39 and looks to move up to fourth with her next block. Senior
Katie Hogan will also be a key player for the Panthers. Hogan is coming off a beach volleyball season where she led nationally ranked FIU at the No. 1 slot for seven matches.
"We have basically a new team," said Buck-Crockett. "A lot of new faces and this weekend will test our chemistry. I feel very confident that this team is going to do great things."
Scouting Coastal Carolina: The Chanticleers marked a 25-5 (14-0 in Big South Conference) record in 2015, capturing their first conference title in nearly 20 years. Coastal Carolina, coached by Jozsef Forman, has emerged as consistently one of the best teams in the Big South, placing at least second in the last four years. Last season, the team appeared in the NCAA Tournament, where they were eliminated by Creighton, 3-1, in the first round. The Panthers lead the all-time series, 1-0 with the only victory coming in 1992.
Scouting Miami: The Hurricanes are coming off a 21-10 (14-6 in ACC) season, continuing their postseason appearance streak of seven straight NCAA Tournaments. Miami placed fifth in the conference and was bounced out of the first round of the NCAA Tournament by Iowa State in a 3-0 affair. The Panthers lead the all-time series, 24-12.
Scouting Florida A&M: The Lady Rattlers completed the 2015 season (8-21, 7-3 in MEAC) with their second consecutive losing year. It also broke their streak of 17-straight regular season conference/division titles. Florida A&M finished the year with a 3-1 loss to Howard in the MEAC Quarterfinals. FIU leads the all-time series between the Lady Rattlers, 19-7, winning the last eight meetings, extending back to 1997.
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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/.
