JACKSONVILLE, Florida (Feb. 21, 2020) – The No. 10 FIU beach volleyball team opened the season with a pair of duals against No. 17 Georgia State and No. 18 Florida Atlantic as a part of the UNF Beach Invitational at The Cooper Beach Volleyball Complex on Friday. The Panthers fell 4-1 to GSU, but topped FAU 3-2 during the team's first day of competition.
DUAL ONE – GEORGIA STATE
The lone victory for FIU came at the hands of Federica Frasca and Margherita Bianchin as the pair won a three-set thriller at court one to start the year. Presley Forbes and Madison Besterfield made their debut as partners on court five, and the pair forced a third set before falling to GSU. Abbie Hughes and Sabian Sasser won their first set before dropping consecutive sets at court four.
RESULTS
1. Federica Frasca/Margherita Bianchin (FIU) def. Olivia Stasevich/Georgia Johnson, (GSU) 21-13, 14-21, 15-11
2. Maddy Delmonte/ Eden Hawes (GSU) def. Lina Bernier/Ali Denney (FIU) 21-15, 21-19
3. Kelly Dorn /Kate Novack (GSU) def. Emma Erteltova/Sophia Brandstetter (FIU) 21-17, 21-17
4. Maddie Gordon/Becky Tresham (GSU) def. Abbie Hughes/Sabian Sasser (FIU) 18-21, 21-13, 15-8
5. Cara Guthrie/Mattie Johnson (GSU) def. Madison Besterfield/Presley Forbes (FIU) 21-15, 17-21, 15-11
Ext. Nina Petranovic/Gina Lipscomb (FIU) def. Meagan McCall/Elise Saga (GSU) 21-17, 21-14
Order of finish: 5,4,3,2,1
DUAL TWO – FLORIDA ATLANTIC
The Panthers topped the Owls 3-2 with courts 1, 3, and 4 bringing home victories. Frasca and Biachin took down their opponents 21-19, 21-18. Nina Petranovic and Sophia Brandstetter won their contest 22-20, 21-18 on court four while Lina Bernier and Gina Lipscomb took down FAU 21-17, 21-13 on court three.
RESULTS
1. Federica Frasca/Margherita Bianchin (FIU) def. Mackenzie Morris/Erica Brok (FAU) 21-19, 21-18
2. Savannah Pesante/Ellie Austin (FAU) def. Ali Denney/Emma Erteltova (FIU) 21-17, 21-17
3. Lina Bernier/Gina Lipscomb (FIU) def. Courtney Moon/Kaila Dorish (FAU) 21-17, 21-13
4. Sophia Brandstetter/Nina Petranovic (FIU) def. Megan McGrath/Maylin Bouffard (FAU) 22-20, 21-18
5. Sam Gott/Jillenne Cangelosi (FAU) def. Madison Besterfield/Abbie Hughes (FIU) 21-19, 21-14
6. Ashley Klassen/Emery Pillsbury (FIU) vs. Jackie Farris/Abby Jackson (FAU) no result
Order of finish: (4,5,2,1,3)
UP NEXT
The Panthers close out the UNF Beach Invitational on Saturday with duals against tournament host North Florida at 10 a.m. ET and Mercer at 3 p.m.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Get all the latest information on the team by following @FIUVolleyball on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook or @FIU_Beach on Instagram and @FIUBeach on Facebook. General athletic news can also be found at @FIUSports on Facebook and @FIUAthletics on Twitter and Instagram.
