FGCU Beach Volleyball: A-SUN Tournament Preview

The third-seeded FGCU beach volleyball team (14-9) will open the A-SUN tournament on Thursday at 10:30 a.m. against sixth-seeded North Alabama (10-10) at the Cooper Beach courts on the campus of Stetson University.

The victor will move on to the winner's bracket semifinal against second-seeded North Florida at 3 p.m. The six-team tournament is double-elimination until the championship, which is winner-take-all.

Tournament Schedule
Thursday
Match 1: No. 4 Coastal Carolina vs No. 5 Austin Peay, 8:30 a.m.
Match 2: No. 3 FGCU vs No. 6 North Alabama, 10:30 a.m.
Match 3: No. 1 Stetson vs Coastal Carolina/Austin Peay winner, 1 p.m.
Match 4: No. 2 North Florida vs FGCU/North Alabama winner, 3 p.m.

Friday
Match 5: Match 1 loser vs Match 4 loser, 9 a.m.
Match 6: Match 2 loser vs Match 3 loser, 11 a.m.
Match 7: Match 3 winner vs Match 4 winner, 1 p.m.
Match 8: Match 5 winner vs Match 6 winner, 3 p.m.

Saturday
Match 9: Match 8 winner vs Match 7 loser, 11 a.m.
Championship: Match 7 winner vs Match 9 winner, 1 p.m.

FGCU's Tournament History:
The Eagles are 10-14 all-time in the A-SUN tournament, having won a pair of matches in each of the past three years, including a championship match appearance in 2017. Giovanna Borgiotti has the best record (5-2) in the tournament among players currently on the roster.

Year-By-Year
2018 - 2-2 overall, lost in loser's bracket final to North Florida
2017 - 2-2 overall, lost in championship to Stetson
2016 - 2-2 overall, lost in loser's bracket final to North Florida
2015 - 1-2 overall, lost in loser's bracket semifinal to North Florida
2014 - 0-2 overall, lost in loser's bracket quarterfinal to Stetson
2013 - 1-2 overall, lost in loser's bracket semifinal to Jacksonville
2012 - 2-2 overall, tournament featured round-robin play

Record By Opponent
Mercer - 4-1
Jacksonville - 2-1
Coastal Carolina - 1-0
Jacksonville - 1-0
North Florida - 2-7
Stetson - 0-5

Individuals in the Tournament
Karissa Rhoades - 5-6
Katherine Puisis - 4-7
Kayla Whetstone - 2-2
Snowy Burnam - 2-2
Cortney VanLiew - 0-4
Amanda Carroll - 3-7
Giovanna Borgiotti - 5-2

Past Champions (Regular Season/Tournament)
2019 - Stetson/TBD
2018 - Stetson/Stetson
2017 - Stetson/Stetson
2016 - Stetson/North Florida
2015 - Stetson/Stetson
2014 - North Florida/Stetson
2013 - North Florida/North Florida
2012 - North Florida/North Florida

Follow Along:
Live stats will be available for each match of the tournament here. Also, every match is being aired on ESPN+. As the tournament progresses, specific links will be posted here and on social media.

On The Line:
The third-seeded Green and Blue are looking to become the first school in conference history to capture an A-SUN tournament championship in both indoor and beach volleyball, and they are just two victories shy of setting a new single-season record for team victories.

Things to Know:
Unlike other sports, the winner of this weekend's tournament does not get an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament due to the still-growing nature of the sport.

This will be the third-consecutive season that Stetson has hosted the tournament. FGCU hosted the event in 2014 and 2015.

Livestats Link: https://sidearmstats.com/stetson/bvball/xlive.htm

ESPN+ Link: http://www.espn.com/watch/_/id/a3e0a785-a5f7-49c8-a361-f5f3ac19da22/womens-beach-volleyball

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