Upcoming Event: Women's Volleyball versus Alabama State on September 18, 2026 at 11 a.m.
11 a.m.
Women's Volleyball
vs. Alabama State
Florida Atlantic University Athletics
Friday, August 28
Boca Raton, Fla.
10 a.m.
Florida Atlantic
1-0,0-0American
3
vs
0
Merrimack
0-1,0-0MAAC
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Merrimack | 17 | 17 | 20 | 0 |
| Fla. Atlantic | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
Owls Sweep Opening Day of 2026
8/28/2026 11:40:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
BOCA RATON, Fla. – The Florida Atlantic volleyball team opened their 40th season with a pair of sweeps over Merrimack, 3-0 (25-17, 25-17, 25-20), and Stetson, 3-0 (27-25, 25-13, 25-10) on Friday at Abessinio Court at Eleanor. R. Baldwin Arena.
Florida Atlantic moves to 2-0 to open the season, while Merrimack and Stetson drop to 0-2.
HOW IT HAPPENED
GAME ONE
Merrimack took the early 2-0 lead, but it didn't take long for the Owls to answer, scoring five-straight to take their first lead of the day at 5-2. The Warriors retook the lead 10-6, however, a dominant 9-0 run from the Owls put them back in front by five, 15-10, at the opening set media break. FAU never looked back the rest of the set, outscoring Merrimack 10-7 over the remainder of the first to take the first set lead, 25-17.
After jumping out to an early 3-1 lead, the Owls and Warriors traded blows in the second set through a back-and-forth battle. Following a slight 15-14 Merrimack advantage at the second set media break, the Owls locked in down the stretch, producing an 11-2 run that was capped off by a kill from Olivia Hart to claim the second set 25-17 and take the two-set advantage.
Merrimack jumped out to a 7-1 lead to open the third. The Owls answered back, going on a 12-3 run to battle back and take the lead 13-10, forcing a Warrior timeout. Maya Van Heyst picked up her team-high second ace to extend the FAU lead to 15-11 at the third quarter technical timeout. FAU extended the lead to seven at 20-13, forcing Merrimack to call its second and final timeout of the third. The Warriors tried to rally, going on a 5-2 run to cut the Owls' lead down to four at 22-18, but it was too little too late as Anna Hartman closed out an impressive 12-kill performance to cap off the Owls' three-set win, 25-20.
GAME TWO
After trading leads to open the contest, the Owls scored five unanswered to take a 7-3 lead and force an early Stetson timeout. The Hatters went on a 4-0 out of the timeout to bring things even at 7-7, before another FAU run extended the Owls' lead back to four, 12-8, as the Hatters took their second and final timeout. Sequoia Layne's fifth kill of the opening set kept the FAU lead at four, 19-15, however, the Hatters scored three unanswered to cut the Owls' lead to just one, 19-18, and force FAU to call its first timeout of the match. The Owls retook the lead 22-20, but a 4-0 Stetson run put the Hatters within set point as the Owls trailed by two, 24-22. FAU was not going to go away without a fight, locking in for a 5-1 run to take the first set lead, 27-25.
After battling through a close 10-9 advantage to open set two, the Owls dominated the rest of the way, outscoring the Hatters 15-4 through the remainder of the set to take the 25-13 win and the two-set lead.
The Hatters held the early advantage at 3-2 to open the third, however, the Owls then went on an 8-1 run to lead 10-4 and force a Stetson timeout. FAU continued its momentum as Layne's 12th kill of the night pushed the Owls' lead to 15-7 at the third quarter technical break. The Hatters just couldn't find an answer to the Owls as FAU dominated the rest of the way, closing the set on a 10-3 run to close out the three-set sweep, 25-10.
STATS & NOTESGallery: (8-28-2026) 2026 VB FAU Invitational (Aug. 28)
PRESS CONFERENCE
UP NEXT
The Owls will close out opening weekend play on Saturday as they take on the FIU Panthers for their Florida Atlantic Invitational finale at 2 p.m. inside Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena.
FOLLOW THE OWLS
Keep up with everything Florida Atlantic volleyball at FAUSports.com and on social media on X, Instagram, and Facebook.
Florida Atlantic moves to 2-0 to open the season, while Merrimack and Stetson drop to 0-2.
HOW IT HAPPENED
GAME ONE
Merrimack took the early 2-0 lead, but it didn't take long for the Owls to answer, scoring five-straight to take their first lead of the day at 5-2. The Warriors retook the lead 10-6, however, a dominant 9-0 run from the Owls put them back in front by five, 15-10, at the opening set media break. FAU never looked back the rest of the set, outscoring Merrimack 10-7 over the remainder of the first to take the first set lead, 25-17.
After jumping out to an early 3-1 lead, the Owls and Warriors traded blows in the second set through a back-and-forth battle. Following a slight 15-14 Merrimack advantage at the second set media break, the Owls locked in down the stretch, producing an 11-2 run that was capped off by a kill from Olivia Hart to claim the second set 25-17 and take the two-set advantage.
Merrimack jumped out to a 7-1 lead to open the third. The Owls answered back, going on a 12-3 run to battle back and take the lead 13-10, forcing a Warrior timeout. Maya Van Heyst picked up her team-high second ace to extend the FAU lead to 15-11 at the third quarter technical timeout. FAU extended the lead to seven at 20-13, forcing Merrimack to call its second and final timeout of the third. The Warriors tried to rally, going on a 5-2 run to cut the Owls' lead down to four at 22-18, but it was too little too late as Anna Hartman closed out an impressive 12-kill performance to cap off the Owls' three-set win, 25-20.
GAME TWO
After trading leads to open the contest, the Owls scored five unanswered to take a 7-3 lead and force an early Stetson timeout. The Hatters went on a 4-0 out of the timeout to bring things even at 7-7, before another FAU run extended the Owls' lead back to four, 12-8, as the Hatters took their second and final timeout. Sequoia Layne's fifth kill of the opening set kept the FAU lead at four, 19-15, however, the Hatters scored three unanswered to cut the Owls' lead to just one, 19-18, and force FAU to call its first timeout of the match. The Owls retook the lead 22-20, but a 4-0 Stetson run put the Hatters within set point as the Owls trailed by two, 24-22. FAU was not going to go away without a fight, locking in for a 5-1 run to take the first set lead, 27-25.
After battling through a close 10-9 advantage to open set two, the Owls dominated the rest of the way, outscoring the Hatters 15-4 through the remainder of the set to take the 25-13 win and the two-set lead.
The Hatters held the early advantage at 3-2 to open the third, however, the Owls then went on an 8-1 run to lead 10-4 and force a Stetson timeout. FAU continued its momentum as Layne's 12th kill of the night pushed the Owls' lead to 15-7 at the third quarter technical break. The Hatters just couldn't find an answer to the Owls as FAU dominated the rest of the way, closing the set on a 10-3 run to close out the three-set sweep, 25-10.
STATS & NOTES
- Game one
- Hartman had a dominant performance against Merrimack, posting a match-high 12 kills off an impressive .600 hitting clip.
- Emsley Venard led the Owls in assists with 24, while Van Heyst dished out 13 in her FAU debut.
- Defensively, Luye Marquez-Moreno posted a team-high eight digs, while Libby Ashline finished with a team-best five blocks in the win.
- As a team, the Owls outhit the Warriors, .255 to .133, while also holding advantages in kills (45-27), aces (5-1), assists (42-26), and digs (38-35).
- Game two
- Layne capped off an impressive day for the Owls, recording a match-best 14 kills on a dominant .700 hitting performance, while also tying for a match-high two aces and two blocks.
- Van Heyst recorded the Owls' first double-double of the season, dishing out a match-best 28 assists and tying for a team-best 10 digs.
- As a team, the Owls dominated the Hatters in nearly every statistical category, leading the match in kills (43-21), hitting percentage (.330-.071), assists (40-21), aces (11-1), and digs (45-30).
PRESS CONFERENCE
UP NEXT
The Owls will close out opening weekend play on Saturday as they take on the FIU Panthers for their Florida Atlantic Invitational finale at 2 p.m. inside Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena.
FOLLOW THE OWLS
Keep up with everything Florida Atlantic volleyball at FAUSports.com and on social media on X, Instagram, and Facebook.
Players Mentioned
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
RS
/ Women's Volleyball
RS
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's VolleyballTeam Stats
Merri
FAU
Kills
27
45
Errors
15
17
Attempts
90
110
Hitting %
.133
.255
Points
34.0
56.0
Assists
26
42
Aces
1
5
Blocks
6
6
Game Leaders
Kills
12
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
4
Kills
6
Aces
1
Blocks
5
Kills
5
Aces
1
Blocks
0
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