The Basics
- The No. 8 FIU beach volleyball team split its two duals on Friday during the first day at the FSU Invitational in Tallahassee at the Florida State Beach Volleyball Courts. The Panthers defeated No. 17 Georgia State, 3-2, before closing the day with a 4-1 loss to the No. 3 Seminoles. FIU improves to 12-9 on the year, while moving to 4-3 in Coastal Collegiate Sports Association play.     

Dual One Details
FIU 3, Georgia State 2 
FIU (12-8), Georgia State (17-10)
Rankings: FIU – AVCA No. 8/DiG No. 10, Georgia State – AVCA No. 17/DiG No. 18
Tallahassee, Florida | Florida State University Beach Courts

- FIU took to the sand for its first dual of the day and pulled out a hard-fought 3-2 win over No. 17 Georgia State. This was the second meeting of the season between the Panthers and GSU, with FIU having also defeated Georgia State, 5-0, on Feb. 23 during its first weekend of 2019.   

- Lina Bernier and Erika Zembyla, ranked sixth in the nation at the four position, got things started for the Panthers with a straight-set 21-14, 21-19 win over the No. 10-ranked pair of Becky Tresham and Maddie Gordon on court four to give FIU a 1-0 dual lead. GSU, however, came back on court five to defeat Katie Friesen and Madison Besterfield in three sets, 15-21, 21-12, 15-20, to even the contest up. The Panthers would secure the dual victory with back-to-back wins on court one, as Federica Frasca and Margherita Bianchin handed their counterparts a pair of 21-18 defeats, and then secured the win when Ali Denney and Abbie Hughes were victorious on court two, 21-11, 18-21, 16-14.

- Friday morning's dual win was FIU's fourth-straight over Georgia State, and improves its record over the GSU Panthers to 7-3.

Results
No. 1 – Federica Frasca/Margherita Bianchin (FIU) def. Georgia Johnson /Olivia Stasevich, (GSU) 21-18, 21-18
No. 2 – Ali Denney/Abbie Hughes (FIU) def. Maddy Delmonte/Eden Hawes (GSU) 21-11, 18-21, 16-14
No. 3 – Brooke Weiner/Kate Novack (GSU def. Dorina Klinger/Ronja Klinger (FIU), 21-18, 18-21, 15-12
No. 4 – Lina Benrier/Erika Zembyla (FIU) def. Becky Tresham/Maddie Gordon (GSU), 21-14, 21-19
No. 5 – Ashley McGinn/Kelly Dorn (GSU) def. Katie Friesen/Madison Besterfield (FIU) 15-21, 21-12, 15-10
Exh. – Helene Thelle/Nina Petranovic (FIU) def. Ashley Bauchert/Bekah Brodbeck (GSU), 21-18, 27-25
 
Order of finish: 4, 5, 1, 2, 3
 
Dual Two Details
Florida State 4, FIU 1 
FIU (12-9), Florida State (19-5)
Rankings: FIU – AVCA No. 8/DiG No. 10, Florida State – AVCA No. 3/DiG No. 3
Tallahassee, Florida | Florida State University Beach Courts

- FIU and Florida State met for the second time in a week, and for the second time the Seminoles came out on top in a tough contest, this time winning 4-1. Three of the four matches that the Panthers dropped went three sets. The Blue and Gold fell to Florida State, 3-2, during the second day of the Surf 'N' Turf Invitational on South Beach on March 30.

- Federica Frasca and Margherita Bianchin won their second match of the day, their fourth match in their last five, and eighth out of their last 10.

- Dorina and Ronja Klinger took their match on court two to three sets (21-16, 12-21, 15-11), while Ali Denney and Abbie Hughes also went the distance on court three (21-17, 13-21, 15-11). Lina Bernier and Erika Zembyla also went three sets at the number five position (21-14, 16-21, 15-6). 

Results
No. 1 – Federica Frasca/Margherita Bianchin (FIU) def. Alaina Chacon/Madison Fitzpatrick (FSU), 21-15, 21-14.
No. 2 – Sara Putt/Payton Rund (FSU) def. Dorina Klinger/Ronja Klinger (FIU), 21-16, 12-21, 15-11
No. 3 – Brooke Kuhlman/Avery Poppinga (FSU) def. Ali Denney/Abbie Hughes (FIU), 21-17, 13-21, 15-11
No. 4 – Molly McBain/Payton Caffrey (FSU) def. Katie Friesen/Nina Petranovic (FIU), 21-15, 21-14
No. 5 – Macy Jerger/Kate Privett (FSU) def. Lina Bernier/Erika Zembyla (FIU), 21-14, 16-21, 15-16
Exh. – Morgan Chacon/Ashley Robert (FSU) def. Helene Thelle/Madison Besterfield (FIU), 22-20, 21-18
 
Order of finish: 4, 5, 1, 3, 2

Up Next
The Panthers will close out the FSU Invitational on Saturday, April 6, at 9:30 a.m., when they take to the court against No. 16 Florida Atlantic.  

Social Media
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