FGCU VB: Sunshine State Classic Preview

 The FGCU volleyball team (7-2) will head a bit north for the Sunshine State Classic on Friday and Saturday, which will include tough matchups against UCF (6-3), Miami (2-3) and Florida Atlantic (6-2). The event is being hosted at The Venue at UCF.

The event, which was hosted by Miami last year, is in its third year of existence with the same four teams. FGCU went 0-3 in 2017, but bounced back to finish 2-1 last year while knocking off Miami on its home court for the program's first-ever road Power 5 win.

The Contestants:
All four teams finished within the top 80 of last year's final RPI - UCF (10th), FGCU (47th), FAU (75th) and Miami (79th).

Scouting UCF:
UCF will enter the this year's event at 6-3 overall, coming off a weekend in which they upset No. 14 Illinois in four sets and fell to No. 7 Marquette in five. Those performances helped them receive votes in the latest AVCA poll for the fourth straight week, and they'll be looking to avenge last year's five-set loss to FGCU in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament that also ended their 24-match winning streak. They'll be led by sophomore McKenna Melville, who has 144 kills, 101 digs and 16 blocks over 36 sets.

Scouting the U:
Miami, who went 13-12 overall last year, is off to a 2-3 start this season with losses to TCU, Auburn and Missouri. The Hurricanes will be led by freshman outside hitter Kennedy Prince, who has at least 14 kills in every match along with 36 total digs through five matches. Head coach Jose "Keno" Gandara recorded his 100th career win at Miami in last year's event.

Scouting FAU:
Florida Atlantic, which enters at 6-2 overall and is coached by former FGCU assistant Fernanda Nelson, is 3-3 against the Eagles since Nelson took over in 2012. FGCU won in straight sets last year's meeting. The Owls, who went 21-7 last year, have taken then No. 22 Florida State to five sets this year and knocked off TCU on the road in five. They also have another strong win over Boston College in four sets. One of their top players will be junior outside hitter Sydney Nemtuda, who has team-highs in kills (80) and digs (94) along with eight aces and seven blocks.

Last Time Out:
The Eagles, who had a Division I era program-best 6-0 start to the season before falling to No. 15 Kentucky and Indiana this past weekend, also had their 19-match regular season winning streak come to an end in the Bluegrass Battle, although Dana Axner was named to the all-tournament team.

FGCU has been well-represented so far this year among the A-SUN's weekly awards. Cortney VanLiew and Axner were named the player and defensive player of the week, respectively, on Sept. 3. Erin Shomaker was named the top freshman a week later, and Tori Morris was the defensive player of the week this week.