Schedule | Roster | Statistics (2018) | Twitter
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - After a four-match homestand, North Florida travels south to Boca Raton to conclude its slate of regular season tournaments with the Owls Classic hosted by Florida Atlantic. UNF will face San José State, South Dakota State and host FAU over the weekend.
Schedule and Tournament Coverage
What: Owls Classic
Where: Florida Atlantic University - Boca Raton, Fla.
When: Friday, Sept. 14 - Saturday, Sept. 15
Friday, Sept. 14
Saturday, Sept. 15
Last Time Out
Key contributions off the bench, a memorable performance from sophomore
Devyn Wheeler and a stifling defense at the net combined to lift the Ospreys over the North Dakota Fighting Hawks, 3-2, at the UNF Arena Monday, September 10.
- Wheeler's night included 21 kills, one shy of her career high, and 11 total blocks, etching her in as tied-for-second all-time in blocks for five-set matches.
- UNF (3-8) had 16 total blocks as a unit, tied-for-third in North Florida single-match history for five setters.
On The Attack
UNF leads the ASUN in kills (568), which is also good for eighth in the nation. UNF has four players with at least 85 kills, led by junior
Taryn Griffey's 152.
Freshman of the Week
After 45 kills last week, freshman
Solimar Cestero garnered her first-career weekly all-conference laurel.
- The Toa Baja, Puerto Rico native notched the ASUN Freshman of the Week award, the first weekly award received by an Osprey this season.
- She also leads all rookies in kills across the nine-team conference. Seven times Cestero has posted at least 10 kills, doing so in each of the last six matches.
Can You Dig it?
Last year, senior
Asante Lopez totaled 100 digs. This year, the Jacksonville native already has a team-best 143 digs, good for fifth in the ASUN.
- Lopez has collected 20+ digs in three matches this year, including a 25-dig outing against New Mexico Sept. 7, good for a career high.
- She went on to compile 40 more digs on the weekend, earning a spot on the UNF Invitational All-Tournament Team.
Wright's Words
"It is [our lineup] is really starting to morph together for this season, as well as how to make changes and how to motivate and either help them be competitive or let them decompress," head coach
Kristen Wright said. "We are speeding things back up and finding gaps and servers are being more consistent. It should be fun [this weekend]. I'm hoping for our team to really be focused and consistent."
Scouting Report
Florida Atlantic | Statistics | Roster
The Basics
- Boca Raton, Fla.
- Conference USA (C-USA)
- 2018 Record: 6-3
- 2017 Record: 18-9, 9-5 C-USA
- C-USA Preseason Ranking: Third
- Head Coach: Fernanda Nelson (Sixth season)
- Head-to-Head: FAU leads, 7-4
- Last Meeting: W, 3-2 August 26, 2016 at FAU
- After starting off 0-3, the Owls have won six-straight matches, earning tournament wins at the FAU Invitational and the DePaul Tournament. Last weekend they needed just 10 sets to sweep the field in Chicago, capping the weekend with a 3-0 rout of the host Blue Demons. Senior Ivone Martinez has won back-to-back Conference USA Setter of the Week awards.
San José State | Statistics | Roster
The Basics
- San José, Calif.
- Mountain West Conference
- 2018 Record: 4-2
- 2017 Record: 17-12, 9-9 Mountain West
- Mountain West Preseason Ranking: Sixth
- Head Coach: Jolene Shephardson (Fifth season)
- Head-to-Head: 0-0
- Last Meeting: First-ever meeting
- The Spartans are riding a four-match winning streak and most recently won the Hampton Inn & Suites Northern Colorado Classic last weekend with wins against Northern Colorado, Alabama State and Pacific. Three SJSU players landed on the all-tournament squad, led by MVP Fernanda Vino. This is the final Mountain West opponent on UNF's schedule this season, having faced Wyoming and New Mexico already.
South Dakota State | Statistics | Roster
The Basics
- Brookings, S.D.
- Summit League
- 2018 Record: 2-8
- 2017 Record: 2-25, 0-14 Summit League
- Summit League Preseason Ranking: Eighth
- Head Coach: Jolene Shephardson (Fourth season)
- Head-to-Head: Tied, 1-1
- Last Meeting: W, 3-1 September 6, 2008 at the Seminole Tri-Tournament
- SDSU picked up its first two wins of the season this past weekend, topping UMASS - Lowell and Eastern Illinois, while falling to Iowa and Drake at the Drake Invitational in Des Moines, Iowa. It hasn't won more than two matches during the non-conference section of their schedule since 2015. Senior Payton Richardson tied the school record for block assists earlier this season, earning the honor as Summit League Volleyball Player of the Week.
Up Next
UNF's final tune-up prior to ASUN play comes Tuesday, September 18 at 6:00 p.m. against Bethune-Cookman in the UNF Arena. The match with the Wildcats kicks off a stretch of five home matches between September 18 and the September 25.
