No. 15 Sandy Owls Finish Beach Burrow Bash Unbeaten

Saturday, February 21

Boca Raton, Fla.

2 p.m.

Florida Atlantic

Palm Beach Atlantic

Cameron Knifton and Allie Spittal vs. PBA

2/21/2026 10:48:00 PM | Women's Beach Volleyball

Photo Gallery Photo Gallery 2

BOCA RATON, Fla. – The No. 15 Florida Atlantic beach volleyball team finished its opening weekend unbeaten, earning wins over Palm Beach Atlantic, 4-1, and CUSA rival FIU, 3-2, on Saturday.

Florida Atlantic improved to 4-0, while Palm Beach Atlantic dropped to 4-4, and FIU finished 2-2 after the weekend play.

Cameron Knifton and Allison Spittal scored first for the Sandy Owls, earning a dominant straight set win on court five, 21-17, 21-18. Klaire VanDeusen and Mia Scanlon extended FAU's lead to 2-0, taking a 21-18, 21-19 two-setter at the 4s. Denisse Morgenstern and Shantel Starling clinched the match for the Sandy Owls, claiming a straight-set win at the 1s, 21-12, 21-16. Olivia Strandberg and Ava Koehl made it 4-0 Sandy Owls on court three, taking a 21-16, 21-18 win. Palm Beach Atlantic closed out the match, capturing its only point on court two to finish the 4-1 final.

Against the Panthers, Knifton and Spittal completed their perfect 4-0 weekend, taking a 23-21, 21-7 two-setter over on court five. VanDeusen and Scanlon pushed the FAU lead to 2-0 after earning an impressive 21-17, 21-8 straight-set win at the 4s. FIU battled back, taking a two-set win on court two and then rallying in a three-set comeback at the 3s to even the match at 2-2, with the match-winner to be decided on court one. After earning a dominant win in set one, Morgenstern and Starling had to claim the win in a third set. After battling through a 9-9 tie, the pair went on a 6-2 run to clinch the win and finish out the Sandy Owls' perfect 4-0 weekend.

No. 15 FLORIDA ATLANTIC 3 – PALM BEACH ATLANTIC 1
Scores
1. Denisse Morgenstern/Shantel Starling (FAU) def. Maddie Kremer/Katelyn Nadeau (PBA) 21-12 21-16
2 Katie Galligan/Angela Goggin (PBA) def. Reese Edwards/Kendall Mignerey (FAU) 19-21 21-15 16-14
3 Olivia Strandberg/Ava Koehl (FAU) def. Sydney Corbett/Cameron Ring (PBA) 21-16 21-18
4 Klaire VanDeusen/Mia Scanlon (FAU) def. Maggie Cox/Zoye Caroline (PBA) 21-18 21-19
5 Cameron Knifton/Allison Spittal (FAU) def. Sofia Augusto/Annika Huhtamaki (PBA) 21-13 21-10

Order of finish: 5, 4, 1, 3, 2

No. 15 FLORIDA ATLANTIC 3 – FIU 2
Scores
1. Denisse Morgenstern/Shantel Starling (FAU) def. Katarina Drozd/Brianna Luoma (FIU) 21-11, 15-21, 15-11
2 Hanna Gubik/Nicole Robison (FIU) def. Reese Edwards/Kendall Mignerey (FAU) 21-13, 21-16
3 Isabella Pereira/Kendra Brown (FIU) def. Olivia Strandberg/Ava Koehl (FAU) 9-21, 21-11, 15-8
4. Klaire VanDeusen/Mia Scanlon (FAU) def. Elizabeth Nye/Hailey Prodan (FIU) 21-17, 21-8
5 Cameron Knifton/Allison Spittal (FAU) def. Madalyn Wade/Lauren Coady (FIU) 23-21, 21-7

Order of finish: 5, 4, 2, 3, 1

NOTABLES

Florida Atlantic earned another strong win over FIU, marking the Sandy Owls' ninth all-time victory and their third of the season over a team receiving votes in the AVCA preseason poll.
The Sandy Owls also improved to 9-0 all-time vs. Palm Beach Atlantic.
Knifton and Spittal had a dominant weekend, finishing a perfect 4-0 during the Beach Burrow Bash.
Morgenstern and Starling, and VanDeusen and Scanlon finished the day 2-0 to improve to 3-1 on the season. Strandberg and Koehl also improved to 3-1 this season, but finished their second day of play 1-1.

GALLERIES

Gallery: (2-21-2026) BVB vs. Palm Beach Atlantic (Feb. 21)

Gallery: (2-21-2026) BVB vs. FIU (Feb. 21)

UP NEXT
Next weekend, the Sandy Owls will head to Tallahassee, Florida, for the Seminole Beach Bash on Feb. 27-28.

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