MIAMI (April 21, 2017) - The No. 10-ranked FIU beach volleyball team (22-13, 9-6) split its first two matches at the 2017 Coastal Collegiate Sports Association (CCSA) Beach Volleyball Championships on Friday, April 21, at the Lakepoint Sporting Community Park in Emerson, Georgia. FIU was defeated by South Carolina, 3-2 but took down Tulane, 4-1, in its final match of the day.
 
FIU is in Pool A along with Florida State (one seed), South Carolina (four seed), Tulane (eight seed) and UNC-Wilmington (nine seed).
 
On Friday morning, the Panthers butt heads with the fourth-seeded Gamecocks for the third time this season. FIU came close, but finished just shy of a win.
 
One of the two Panther victories against South Carolina was the No. 4 pair of Lina Bernier and Katie Hogan, who took down the Gamecocks' Julia Mannisto and Carly Schnieder, 21-14, 22-20. At the No. 5 pair, Anabela Sataric and Estefanie Bethancourt defeated Jade Vitt and Franky Harrison, 21-19, 21-17.
 
FIU took home their first conference tournament victory in its afternoon match-up against the Green Wave. The first pair to finish was the No. 4 duo of Bernier and Hogan taking down Anna Chin and Sarah Strasner, 21-12, 21-11. At the No. 5 position, Sataric and Bethancourt defeated Christina McAfee and Briana Correa, 21-13, 21-15.
 
The No. 3 duo of Helene Thelle and Natalia Giron dropped the only set of the match against Tulane's Tarin Mergener and Maddy Mertz, 21-19, 21-16.
 
The No. 1 tandem of Margherita Bianchin and Federica Frasca, and Katie Friesen/Taija Thomas, playing at No. 2, both took home victories over their respective Tulane opponents to secure the win at 4-1.
 
The Panthers will continue pool play tomorrow with their first match against No. 1 seeded Florida State at 12 p.m. FIU will conclude pool play of the tournament with a match-up against the UNCW, the ninth seed at 3 p.m.

South Carolina def. FIU, 3-2
 
No. 1 Adrianna Culbert/Katie Smith (USC) def. Margherita Bianchin/Federica Frasca (FIU) 21-14, 21-18
No. 2 Shannon Williams/Ali Denney (USC) def. Katie Friesen/Taija Thomas (FIU) 21-17, 16-21, 15-9
No. 3 Katie Zimmerman/Macie Tendrich (USC) def. Helene Thelle/Natalia Giron (FIU) 21-17, 21-14
No. 4 Lina Bernier/Katie Hogan (FIU) def. Julia Mannisto/Carly Schnieder (USC) 21-14, 22-20
No. 5 Anabela Sataric/Estefanie Bethancourt (FIU) def. Jade Vitt/Franky Harrison (USC) 21-19, 21-17
 
Order of Finish: 3, 1, 5, 4, 2
 
FIU def. Tulane, 4-1
 
No. 1 Margherita Bianchin/Federica Frasca (FIU) def. Tea Juric/Kaylie McHugh (TUL) 21-17, 21-16
No. 2 Katie Friesen/Taija Thomas (FIU) def. Lan Nyugen/Annie Shurtz (TUL) 17-21, 21-19, 15-10
No. 3 Tarin Mergener/Maddy Mertz (TUL) def. Helene Thelle/Natalia Giron (FIU) 21-19, 21-16
No. 4 Lina Bernier/Katie Hogan (FIU) def. Anna Chin/Sarah Strasner (TUL) 21-12, 21-11
No. 5 Anabela Sataric/Estefanie Bethancourt (FIU) def. Christina McAfee/Briana Correa (TUL) 21-13, 21-15
 
Order of Finish: 4, 5, 3, 1, 2
 
#####? ?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 Riccardo Silva 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/.