JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Beach Volleyball (5-4) goes 2-2 at the North Florida-hosted DUUUVAL Invitational, dropping both matches on day one before winning both on day two.

The Panthers began the meet against Jacksonville, dropping the match 3-2. Nicole Robison and Hanna Gubik won court two for the FIU, winning in straight sets 21-14 and 21-13. Kendra Brown and Isabella Pereira were the only other FIU duo to win in the dual, taking court three in three sets. The pair dropped set one before winning sets two and three, 21-16 and 15-13.

JACKSONVILLE 3, FIU 2

1. C. Mrukowski/Hair (JU) def. Drozd/Luoma (FIU), 21-17, 25-23

2. Robison/Gubik (FIU) def. Seward/Garnett (JU), 21-14, 21-13

3. Brown/Pereira (FIU) def. M. Mrukowski/Kliethermes (JU), 18-21, 21-16, 15-13

4. Perry/Taylor (JU) def. Prodan/Nye (FIU), 21-19, 15-21, 15-13

5. Martinez/Fielder (JU) def. Wade/Vildere (FIU), 17-21, 25-23, 15-11

6. Swink/Cabrales (JU) def. Coady/Hobbs (FIU), 21-19, 21-14

The second match of the day saw FIU lose 4-1 against No. 17 North Florida. The Panthers' number one duo was the only victory for FIU. Katarina Drozd and Brianna Luoma pulled out the court one win in three, dropping the first set before winning sets two and three 21-12 and 15-11.

NO. 17 NORTH FLORIDA 4, FIU 1

1. Drozd/Louma (FIU) def. Humphries/Murphy (UNF), 20-22, 21-12, 15-11

2. Murray/Notaro (UNF) def. Gubik/Robison (FIU), 21-14, 23-21

3. Da Silva Encinas/Espy (UNF) def. Brown/Pereira (FIU), 21-11, 21-10

4. Crosby/McDonald (UNF) def. Prodan/Nye (FIU), 17-21, 21-13, 15-12

5. Villalon/Bunch (UNF) def. Vildere/Wade (FIU), 26-24, 21-17

6. Anderson/Hennessey (UNF) def. Boyle/Lander (FIU), 21-17, 21-11

Day two started with a dominant win for the Panthers, beating Eastern Kentucky 4-1 in the dual. Brianna Luoma and Katarina Drozd won their second dual of the meet on court one, beating their counterparts in straight sets 21-14 and 21-16. Kendra Brown and Isabella Pereira continued the winning on court three with another straight set win, 21-13 and 21-14. Elizabeth Nye and Hailey Prodan won in three sets on court four (19-21, 21-16, 17-15), while Nikelle Lander and Sarah Boyle finished the dual with a victory on court five in three sets (21-16, 18-21, 15-9). 

FIU 4, EKU 1

1. Drozo/Luoma (FIU) def. Cutler/Shomock (EKU), 21-14, 21-16

2. Pitsitkoni/Armitas (EKU) def. Robison/Oobik (FIU), 21-17, 19-21, 15-12

3. Pereira/Brown (FIU) def. Floystael/Ward (EKU), 21-13, 21-14

4. Nye/Prodan (FIU) def. Mcallister/Sales (EKU), 19-21, 21-16, 17-15

5. Lander/Boyle (FIU) def. Deideshimer/Lee (EKU), 21-16, 18-21, 15-9

6. Yester/Meinerz (EKU) def. Coady/Hobbs (FIU), 21-16, 17-21, 15-9

FIU finished off the meet against Mercer, cruising through the dual with a 5-0 victory. Katarina Drozd and Brianna Luoma won in three sets on court one, winning set one before dropping set two, and completing the win in set three (21-19, 19-21, 16-14). Hanna Gubik and Nicole Robison cruised through their victory on court two in straight sets (21-14, 21-12), with Kendra Brown and Isabella Pereira doing the same on court three (21-12, 21-15). Elizabeth Nye and Hailey Prodan continued the trend on court four, winning two close sets 21-19 and 24-22, while Sarah Boyle and Nikelle Lander won their second match of the meet together on court five (21-15, 21-18).

FIU 5, MERCER 0

1. Drozd/Luoma (FIU) def. Talocki/Rathburn (Mercer), 21-19, 19-21, 16-14

2. Gubik/Robison (FIU) def. Milner/Estrada (Mercer), 21-14, 21-12

3. Brown/Pereira (FIU) def. Thomas-Warren/Kenney (Mercer), 21-12, 21-15

4. Nye/Prodan (FIU) def. Shrodes/Lee (Mercer), 21-19, 24-22

5. Boyle/Lander (FIU) def. Lenhardt/Johnston (Mercer), 21-15, 21-18

UP NEXT

FIU will head out west for their toughest meet of the young season when they take on LMU, Hawaii, Cal and UCLA on March 13-14 in the East Meets West Invitational.

SOCIAL MEDIA
Fans are encouraged to follow the Panthers on Instagram (@fiubeach) and Twitter (@FIUBeachVB) for all the latest FIU Beach Volleyball news. General athletic news can also be found at @FIUAthletics on Facebook and @FIUAthletics on Twitter and Instagram.