MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – (Nov. 14, 2019)– Junior outside hitter Sydney Nemtuda’s seventh double-double of the season led the Florida Atlantic University volleyball team to a sweep (25-17, 26-24, 25-18) of Middle Tennessee on Thursday night. The Owls improved to 14-10 overall and 8-5 in Conference USA.
Key Plays
Control of the first set seesawed back and forth between the two teams, with neither side able to maintain an advantage. That is, until FAU closed on an 8-1 run, keyed by three kills and a solo block from Zuri Smith to earn a 25-17 victory.
Middle Tennessee (12-16, 5-8) began set number two quickly and appeared ready to even the match up in rapid fashion. The Blue Raiders led comfortably for most of the frame and were ahead 22-17 late in the set. It was then Nemtuda’s turn to spearhead a FAU rally. She had three kills as part of a 9-2 Owls’ spurt to come from behind and take the frame 26-24.
The start of the third set mirrored that of the first, with both squads struggling for momentum. The sixth tie of the stanza came at 11-11, when the Owls scored five straight points in what eventually turned into an 11-2 run. Five different FAU players had kills during the surge, and the Owls were able to complete the sweep 25-18.
Notables
- Sydney Nemtuda finished with 14 kills and 12 digs to lead the Owls in both categories. It was her 11th career double-double
- The sweep was the ninth of the year for FAU and its sixth in conference play
- The Owls extended their winning streak over MT to six in a row and it was the fifth sweep of the Blue Raiders over that time
- The victory ensured FAU of its sixth straight winning season under Nelson, the longest such streak in school history
What’s Next
FAU will finish the regular season at Charlotte, Saturday at noon. Links to live stats and video will be available at fausports.com. In-game updates will be available at twitter.com/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.
