FORT MYERS, Fla.- We continue our 'On This Date in History' series with the FSW Volleyball team, who one year ago, stretched their season long winning streak to five games with a sweep of the Jacksonville Tournament.
Putting a three game winning streak on the line, the Bucs took the court on day two of the FSCJ Tournament from Jacksonville to square off with District foes in Eastern Florida State and Richard Bland out of Virginia. The Bucs absolutely dominated their match with Eastern Florida, hammering out 18 kills in the first set against the Titans to win 25-15 and grab a 1-0 lead in the match. The second was close early, but a push by the Bucs blew things open and they led by double digits the remainder of the set, ultimately finishing off another 25-15 victory to take a commanding 2-0 advantage in the match. The Bucs finished off a dominating performance against the Titans with a 25-14 win in the third to sweep the match and extend their winning streak to four. They hit .379 as a team in the win with Julia de Sa leading the way with 12 kills and Giovanna Bello pulling up a career high 16 digs on the back row.
In their final match of the week, the Bucs squared off with Richard Bland, a perennial favorite in Region 10. FSW came out on fire against the Statesmen, running out to a 12-3 lead in the first and never looking back in route to a 25-15 win to go up 1-0. It was again all Purple and Aqua in the second as the Bucs never trailed on their way to another 25-15 victory to take a 2-0 lead in the match. With the big lead, the Bucs went to the bench in the third and it didn't work out as planned as Richard Bland bounced back with a 25-15 win of their own to push the match to a fourth set. With their starters back in in the fourth, the Bucs dominated, winning 25-10 to close out the match 3-1. Amanda Mendes led the Bucs with 12 kills and a .688 hitting percentage while Marina Alonso dished out a team best 27 assists in the victory.
The sweep in the River City stretched the Bucs winning streak to five, their largest of their rookie season. FSW would end the season a respectable 16-8 overall and went back to Jacksonville and won a pair of games at the FCSAA State Tournament where they finished 4th in their first trip.
Stay tuned FSWBucs.com and @FSWBucs on social media later this month as we continue our trips back in time to relive some of the top moments in FSW Athletics history.