Volleyball Splits on Day One of Michigan Invitational

Friday, September 5

Ann Arbor, Mich.

12 p.m.

Florida Atlantic

4-1,0-0American

Marshall

3-1,0-0Sun Belt

Marshall

Fla. Atlantic

9/5/2025 11:08:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Florida Atlantic volleyball split on the opening day of the Michigan Invitational, sweeping the Marshall Thundering Herd, 3-0, but falling in straight sets against Michigan, 3-0, on Friday inside the Crisler Center.

HOW IT HAPPENED
GAME 1
In their weekend opener, the Owls earned their fourth sweep of the season against Marshall. Florida Atlantic jumped out to a 14-8 lead to open the match. The Thundering Herd responded, going on a 12-4 run to take a two-point lead at 20-18, however, a kill from Kayla Richardson and a Marshall attack error brought the Owls back even at 20-20. The two squads battled through four tie scores through a 24-24 stalemate but kills from Anna Hartman and Maggie Allred closed out the set for the Owls, 26-24, giving FAU the opening 1-0 lead.

The Owls carried the momentum into the opening points of the second as they jumped out to a quick 10-4 lead to open the set. FAU continued to dominate set two, outscoring Marshall 15-11 over the remainder of the set to take the second, 25-15, and the two-point advantage, 2-0.

Florida Atlantic and Marshall battled back-and-forth to open the third, battling through an 8-8 tie. The Thundering Herd produced a 3-0 run to take their largest lead of the set, but the Owls answered back with a 3-0 run of their own to quickly bring things back even at 11. FAU took control of the rest of the match, outscoring the Thundering Herd 14-9 to complete the straight-set sweep, 25-20.

GAME TWO
Florida Atlantic closed out its opening day in a hard-fought battle against the Michigan Wolverines. The Owls held an 8-7 advantage to open the match, but a 4-0 run for the Wolverines helped put themselves back in front 11-8. Following a 16-13 U-M advantage, Florida Atlantic scored four unanswered points off a trio of Wolverine errors, and a kill from Olivia Hart helped the Owls retake the lead 17-16. The Owls maintained an advantage through a 19-18 lead, but Michigan closed out the set with a 7-3 run to take the opening lead, 25-22.

Following a 7-7 tie to open the second, the Owls scored three unanswered off an Isabelle Northam ace and a pair of Michigan errors to force an early Wolverine timeout, 10-7. FAU extended their lead to four after an Erin Morrissey kill, 14-10, however, the Wolverines answered back, producing a 7-1 run to retake the lead 17-15, as FAU called its first timeout of the second. The Owls evened the set at 18-18, but the Wolverines just barely outmuscled FAU over the remainder of the set, capturing the second 25-23 to lead by two, 2-0.

FAU and Michigan battled back-and-forth through a tight 11-10 Wolverine advantage, however, U-M went on a run to hold a four-point lead at the third set media break, 15-10. The Owls kept things within three through a 22-19 Michigan lead, but Florida Atlantic just couldn't rally as the Wolverines eventually took the set, 25-20, to close out the match.

STATS & NOTES

Marshall
- Hart had another career day for the Owls, leading the way offensively with her first career double-double, tying a career-high 15 kills on a .400 clip, in addition to tallying 10 digs.
- Hartman and Richardson also had great performances, recording 11 kills each, hitting .529 and .348, respectively.
- Emsley Venard and Victoria Hensley tied for a match-high 18 assists.
- Defensively, Allred and Northam led the way for the Owls. Allred recorded a career-best seven blocks, including tying a career-best two solo blocks, and Northam tallied a match-high 14 digs to anchor the back row for the Owls.
- As a team, Florida Atlantic dominated in nearly every statistical category, holding advantages over the Thundering Herd in points (59 to 42), kills (48 to 38), hitting percentage (.346 to .155), service aces (4 to 2), blocks (7 to 2), assists (43 to 34), and digs (46 to 40).
Michigan
- Morrissey led the way for the Owls with 10 kills, while Dyer turned in nine kills and Hartman scored eight.
- Venard dished out a season-high 26 assists.
- Hart registered a team-leading three blocks and Northam led the Owls backline with 11 digs.

UP NEXT
FAU wrap up play in the Michigan Invitational on Saturday, facing off against the Southern Indiana Screaming Eagles for a 12 p.m. ET first serve at the Crisler Center. Fans can catch all the action live on B1G+.

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