Over the last eight years, FGCU’s volleyball team has been a dominant force in the ASUN Conference. They have made every conference title game since 2016, winning three championships, and they look to continue this streak entering 2024.
The Eagles will enter this season rebuilding their championship roster, as many players have graduated or lost their NCAA eligibility to continue playing in the green and blue. The 2023 ASUN All-Tournament setter Lily Tessier and mid-blocker Juliana Lentz were the most notable departing.
The team acquired freshmen outside hitter Camila Soto and setter Raegan Richardson to fill these holes. To bring the collegiate experience back to the roster, FGCU added several transfer students: defensive specialist graduate student Megan Harris, outside hitter graduate student Sasha Van Der Merwe and outside hitter senior Barbara Koehler.
After a breakout freshman season, sophomore middle blocker Ella Chapman is the player that can make or break the Eagles’ season, as she finished last season with the second-most blocks on her team and ranked seventh in the ASUN Conference in the category.
For those achievements, she was selected as the ASUN Freshman of the Year and to the ASUN Third-Team All-Conference. If she can back up her performance from last year, the Eagles can count on her to lead them back to the postseason with their revamped roster.
FGCU’s schedule consists of 28 games, of which 16 are against their ASUN Conference adversaries and the other 12 are non-conference. Of these games, 13 will be held inside Alico Arena.
The Eagles’ season begins on Friday, Aug. 30, against the North Dakota State University Bison in the FGCU’s Hilton Inn Fort Myers Classic. They look to avoid a similar performance to last year’s season opener, where they lost to the Arizona State University Sun Devils 3-0.
Their most-anticipated non-conference match is against the University of Dayton on Friday, Sept. 20. They are the only team on their schedule that made the NCAA Tournament alongside FGCU last season.
On the road, the Eagles begin ASUN Conference play against the Stetson University Hatters on Tuesday, Sept. 24. They will then return to Alico Arena to face the Queen’s University of Charlotte Royals on Friday, Sept.27, and celebrate their 2023 ASUN Conference Championship in front of their home crowd.
FGCU’s biggest challenge will come on the road against the Libscomb University Bisons in Nashville, Tennessee, on Friday, Oct. 25. The Bisons are plagued to be the best team in the ASUN, topping the ASUN Volleyball Preseason Poll by one vote over the Eagles, and reached the 2023 ASUN Volleyball Championship match last season.
Alongside their matchup with Lipscomb, the largest unknown on the teams’ schedule is against the University of West Georgia Wolves, the newest ASUN Conference member. They play the Wolves twice: inside Alico Arena on Sunday, Sept. 29, and on the road in Carrollton, Georgia on Friday, Nov. 1.
All eyes are on the postseason as the green and blue look to chase glory by winning their fourth ASUN Conference championship in a row. The green and blue will host the 2024 ASUN Volleyball Championship on Nov. 21-23.
