HATTIESBURG, Miss. – (Oct. 25, 2019) – A career night from libero Kori Varney helped the Florida Atlantic University volleyball team record its third sweep in a row with a straight set (25-15, 25-18, 25-22) victory over Southern Miss on Friday night. The Owls are now 11-7 overall, including a 5-2 Conference USA mark.
Key Plays
Three straight FAU points helped the Owls create an 8-4 lead early in the first set. The Eagles (1-21, 0-8) had narrowed the margin to two, 12-10, when FAU reeled off a 13-5 run to take the opening frame.
After an early battle for control, set number two fell into a pattern of the Eagles digging into FAU’s modest cushion, followed by the Owls reestablishing control. Five consecutive FAU points gave the Owls a 16-9 advantage, and the lead remained at least three points the rest of the way. A Sydney Riggs service ace gave FAU a two sets to none edge.
The Owls created separation early in the third set, building a 12-6 lead early on. The margin was seven at 23-16, before the Eagles scored six unanswered points to pull within a point. However, a USM attack error and Cailea Gibbs kill ended any hopes of an Eagle rally.
Notables
- The sweep was the seventh of the year for the Owls.
- Kori Varney collected a career-high 22 digs, three more than her previous best, which also came against USM, back in 2016
- The 22 digs also tied Sydney Nemtuda for the most by an FAU player this season
- Sigourney Kame led the Owls in kills, with eight
- Fellow seniors Jordan Yauch and Massiel Matos chipped in with seven kills each
- Zuri Smith had six kills and five total blocks, Cailea Gibbs posted six kills and four blocks of her own, while Sydney Nemtuda tallied 11 digs to go along with her six kills
- Stephanie Young registered 20 assists and six digs
- Nikki Lakman totaled 17 assists
Quotable
FAU Head Coach Fernanda Nelson
“We played well today. Kori had an incredible game and our serving and defense was very efficient tonight.”
What’s Next
The Owls travel to UAB on Sunday, Oct. 27. The match starts at 2 p.m. Eastern. Links to live stats and video are available at fausports.com. Live updates will be posted to the team’s official Twitter account, @FAUVolleyball.
– FAUSports.com –
Florida Atlantic University Athletics:
FAU Athletics is comprised of 21 intercollegiate teams involving 450 student-athletes that compete in baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, soccer, softball, swimming and diving, tennis, indoor and outdoor track, volleyball, beach volleyball, cheer and dance. The Owls are a NCAA Division I-A (FBS) institution and compete in Conference USA and the Coastal Collegiate Sports Association (CCSA) (beach volleyball, men’s swimming). The Owls have been playing football since 2001 and are a perfect 3-0 in bowl games, the most recent being a 50-3 victory over Akron in the 2017 Cheribundi Tart Cherry Boca Raton Bowl. The dance team finished its 2014 season No. 8, nationally. FAU cheer won a national championship in 2016.
About Florida Atlantic University:
Florida Atlantic University, established in 1961, officially opened its doors in 1964 as the fifth public university in Florida. Today, the University, with an annual economic impact of $6.3 billion, serves more than 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students at sites throughout its six county service region in southeast Florida. FAU’s world-class teaching and research faculty serves students through 10 colleges: the Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, the College of Business, the College for Design and Social Inquiry, the College of Education, the College of Engineering and Computer Science, the Graduate College, the Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine, the Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing and the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science. FAU is ranked as a High Research Activity institution by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. The University is placing special focus on the rapid development of critical areas that form the basis of its strategic plan: Healthy aging, biotech, coastal and marine issues, neuroscience, regenerative medicine, informatics, lifespan and the environment. These areas provide opportunities for faculty and students to build upon FAU’s existing strengths in research and scholarship. For more information, visit www.fau.edu.
