WICHITA, Kan. – The competitiveness of the American Athletic Conference was on full display to begin the 2024 American Volleyball Championship as No. 6 Florida Atlantic defeated No. 3 East Carolina in five sets (25-22, 25-27, 21-25, 25-12, 16-14) to advance to the semifinals.
The Owls improve to 17-12 on the season while the Pirates move to 18-9.
Senior Valeria Rosado had a career-high 26 kills (.312 hit percentage) and 16 digs to lead the Owls to the semifinals. Katelynn Robin (15 kills) and Kaila Ru (10 kills) both reached double-digit kills. Defensively, Isabelle Northam led all players with 20 digs.
The Owls held the Pirates to hitting .188 on the match, while finishing with nine blocks. Florida Atlantic finished hitting .232 on the match and was paced by Victoria Hensley’s 54 assists.
East Carolina had three players reach double-digit kills – Ellie Patt (16), Fran McBride (13) and Izzy Marinelli (13). The Pirates finished with 10 blocks as a team with McBride, Marinelli and Carlia Northcross each finishing with four.
The Owls await the winner of No. 7 North Texas and No. 2 Rice in the semifinals on Saturday, November 23 at noon ET/11 a.m. CT on ESPN+
2024 American Athletic Conference Volleyball Championship Schedule
Hosted by Wichita State | Charles Koch Arena | Wichita, Kansas
First Round Games (Friday, November 22)
Game 1 – No. 6 Florida Atlantic 3, No. 3 East Carolina 2 (25-22, 25-27, 21-25, 25-12, 16-14)
Game 2 – No. 7 North Texas vs. No. 2 Rice (2:30 pm ET/1:30 pm CT) | Stats | ESPN+
Game 3 – No. 8 UAB vs. No. 1 South Florida (6 pm ET/5 pm CT) | Stats | ESPN+
Game 4 – No. 5 Tulsa vs. No. 4 Wichita State (8:30 pm ET/7:30 pm CT) | Stats | ESPN+
Semifinal Games (Saturday, November 23)
Game 5 – No. 6 Florida Atlantic vs. Winner Game 2 (12 pm ET/11 am CT) | Stats | ESPN+
Game 6 – Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 4 (3 pm ET/2 pm CT) | Stats | ESPN+
Final (Sunday, November 24)
Game 7 – Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 6 (1 pm ET/12 pm CT) | Stats | ESPN+
