Owls Open American Play Wednesday at South Florida

BOCA RATON, Fla. – Florida Atlantic volleyball opens American Conference play this week as the Owls head to Tampa, Fla., for a midweek matchup against the South Florida Bulls on Wednesday, Sept. 24. First serve is set for 6 p.m. at the Corral.

SCOUTING FLORIDA ATLANTIC

Florida Atlantic enters American play at 9-4 overall. The Owls are fresh off a 3-0 weekend that saw FAU capture the Owls Paradise Classic Championship, earning wins against George Washington, 3-2, Stetson, 3-0, and Bethune-Cookman, 3-0.
Head Coach Fernanda Nelson is just one win shy of her 200th career win, boasting a 199-169 (.541) career record over her 14 seasons in Paradise.
The Owls are led offensively by Olivia Hart, Anna Hartman, and Erin Morrissey, averaging 3.57, 2.75, and 2.70 kills per set, respectively.
Florida Atlantic's offense is powered by setters Emsley Venard and Victoria Hensley. Venard leads the team with 273 assists, averaging 6.35 per set, while Hensley ranks second on the team with 221 assists, dishing out 5.02 per set.
FAU's back row is anchored by libero Isabelle Northam, who boasts a team-best 174 digs, averaging 4.35 per set. Hart ranks second on the team in digs, tallying 130 and averaging 2.95 per set.
At the net, the Owls' blocking leader is Maggie Allred, with 44 blocks this season and recording 1.19 blocks per set. Madison Dyer and Hartman have also been big presences
at the net for the Owls, recording 28 and 22 blocks, averaging 0.67 and 0.50 blocks per set, respectively.

SCOUTING SOUTH FLORIDA

South Florida enters Wednesday's matchup at 4-7 on the season and is just coming off a 1-2 weekend in Nebraska that saw the Bulls defeat Omaha, 3-1, but fall against No. 18 Creighton, 3-0, and No. 17 Kansas, 3-0, during the Creighton Classic.
The Bulls are led offensively by Maria Clara Andrade, Arianna Beckham, and Addy Brus. Andrade boasts a team-leading 4.08 kills per set, while Beckham and Brus rank second and third with 2.36 and 2.21 kills per set, respectively.
USF's assist leaders are Raegan Richardson and Sarah White. Richardson has dished out a team-leading 7.35 assists per set, while White ranks second with 5.20 assists per set.
Samiha Foster is the Bulls' starting libero, leading the team in digs with 3.77 digs per set this season. Andrade ranks second on the team in digs, recording 2.94 digs per set.
Imani Hartfield leads USF in blocks, tallying a team-best 32 blocks this season and averaging 0.97 blocks per set. Iyanna Garvin, Beckham, and Taelyn Bentley have also been forces at the net for the Bulls, recording 25, 22, and 21 blocks, averaging 0.69, 0.56, and a team-best 1.24 blocks per set, respectively.

SERIES HISTORY

Wednesday's matchup will mark the 23rd all-time meeting between Florida Atlantic and South Florida. The Owls trail the Bulls 5-17 in the series, with a 2-10 record when playing in Tampa.

UP NEXT
Following Wednesday's matchup, the Owls will return to Paradise for their American home opener on Sunday, Sept. 28, as they host the East Carolina Pirates for a 12 p.m. first serve inside Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena.

FOLLOW THE OWLS
To stay up to date with everything Florida Atlantic volleyball, follow @FAUVolleyball on X and Instagram, or like FAU Volleyball on Facebook.

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Players Mentioned

Maggie Allred

Madison Dyer

Olivia Hart

Anna Hartman

Victoria Hensley

Erin Morrissey

Isabelle Northam

Emsley Venard

Upcoming Events

Upcoming Event: Women's Volleyball versus South Florida on November 12, 2025 at 6 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Women's Volleyball versus UTSA on November 14, 2025 at 6 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Women's Volleyball versus American Tournament on November 21, 2025 at TBD

Florida Atlantic University Athletics