Young Owls Fall in Four Sets to UCF

Tuesday, January 26

Orlando, Fla.

4 PM

Florida Atlantic

-01,00 CUSA

UCF

1-0,0-0AAC

Team	1	2	3	4	Final F
Fla. Atlantic	25	17	12	14	1
UCF	19	25	25	25	3

Photo by: JC Ridley/Owlpix.com

1/26/2021 8:07:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

BOCA RATON, Fla. – The Florida Atlantic University volleyball team waited and prepared for more than 14 months for the opportunity to take to the court once more. On Tuesday all their patience came to fruition but not with the outcome that the Owls had hoped for, falling in four sets to host UCF, 19-25, 25-17, 25-12, 25-14.

Nelson's Nuggets

"We feel very blessed that we were able to compete tonight," said Fernanda Nelson, starting her ninth season as FAU's head volleyball coach. "We waited so long to have our first game. I am very proud of our girls. They competed very hard in the first two sets. We definitely got better tonight."

It was the first match played for the Owls since Nov. 23, 2019, and they started strong. The team rushed out to a 25-19 first set win over the Knights, who captured the 2019 American Athletic Conference title and won their first NCAA postseason match that same year. But experience took over in the next three sets with UCF proving the eventual winner with a strong presence at the net and an aggressive service game.

Since their final match in 2019, the Owls' roster has become very young. FAU is led by three returning sophomores, including Stephanie Young, a setter who played nearly 100 sets in 2019, and Camryn Vogler, who has nearly 90 sets of experience. The remainder of the lineup is comprised of two junior college transfers and seven freshmen, most of whom were on the court for the fourth and final set.

The Stats

FAU tallied 42 kills on the night, including a night-high 16 in the first frame
The two teams were similar offensively, but the match was determined defensively with UCF recording 12 blocks to the Owls' four
Individually, newcomer Scherine Dahoue led the Owls with her first double-double of the season tallying 18 kills and 10 digs. She led all attackers on the night
Raine Lynch matched Dahoue's dig total with 10 while Miabella English and Young tallied 20 and 19 assists, respectively.

Next Up

The Owls will travel to Deland, Florida where they will play on Sunday, Jan. 31 versus Stetson University. The match is schedule to start at 4 p.m. and will air on ESPN+..

Fans can follow the team @FAUVolleyball or fausports.com.