Owls Win Season Finale in Five

Friday, March 26

Boca Raton, Fla.

6 P.M.

Florida Atlantic

-212,210 CUSA

Middle Tennessee

-510,48 CUSA

Team	1	2	3	4	5	Final F
Middle Tenn.	14	13	25	25	13	2
Fla. Atlantic	25	25	21	18	15	3

2020-21 FAU Volleyball vs Middle Tennessee State Nikola Bartecka

Photo by: JC Ridley/Owlpix.com

3/26/2021 10:43:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

BOCA RATON, Fla. – The Florida Atlantic University volleyball team (2-12, 2-11 in Conference USA) used all the sets in a 3-2 win over Middle Tennessee (5-9, 4-8 C-USA) on Friday night.

The match was originally scheduled as part of the 2021 spring season opener but was postponed until tonight. It was the season finale for both squads.

Nelson's Nuggets

"We are so proud of our girls," said Fernanda Nelson, FAU's head coach. "They came in every single day with energy and ready to get better. Tonight, we played with lot of heart and pride. Tonight, blocking was the key for us to be able to score out of transition. It was great to see the players enjoying and celebrate the win. We are so excited for the future."

How it Happened

Set 1
FAU jumped to an early lead on the efforts of junior transfer Scherine Dahoue, who had five kills, five digs, a service ace and two block assists in set one. The Owls worked but seemed to cruise through the set never surrendering the lead.

Set 2
The second set saw three lead changes, but a strong game at the net with eight total blocks, including four by freshman Nikola Bartecka, propelled FAU to the second set win.

Sets 3 and 4
The two teams returned from the extended break which seemed to shift the momentum for the Blue Raiders who rushed out to a third set lead, one that FAU could not match. The fourth set saw three ties, but the Owls were never ahead.

Set 5
The Owls and MT tied eight times in the fifth and shortened set. MT tied the match at two and went up 4-2, but a block by Bartecka and sophomore Stephanie Young evened the score at four. Middle Tennessee went up by one, then a Dahoue kill squared the match at 6-6. Once again, the Owls pulled even, at seven, on a sophomore Camryn Vogler kill and at nine, it was freshman Sonte Stewart's turn to tie the match with a kill, then Dahoue did the same at 11. The teams would tie one another once more at 12 before the Owls edged away when Dahoue, who had 20 kills on the night, put one away for a 14-12 FAU lead. Middle Tennessee would score once more and a long rally would end the match in the Owls' favor: 25-14, 25-13, 21-25, 18-25, 15-13.

Statistically

Dahoue, who was one away from her career high kill total, recorded her second double-double in as many matches with 20 kills and 18 digs, as well as adding five block assists and two service aces
Bartecka did set a career high with 11 block assists and she added seven kills
Vogler continued to play an important role with 14 kills, two service aces and nine digs. She was second behind Dahoue's 24.5 points with 12.5
The offense was guided by Young, who had 34 assists and blocked six
Freshman MiaBella English was credited with 25 assists

What's Next

The Owls, who played the entire season without a returning upperclassman and with just one junior transfer, will return everyone for the 2021 fall season, which is just five months away from first serve. Follow the Owls this offseason socially at @fauvolleyball or visit www.fausports.com.