AT A GLANCE
FMU Lions vs. Southeastern University Fire
When: Friday, February 21, 2020
Where: St. Thomas University, Miami Gardens, Fla. | Sand Volleyball Courts
Start: 4 p.m.
Last Meeting: None.
Live Stream Video & Stats: N/A
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – It is fitting that Florida Memorial University's inaugural beach volleyball season will begin in February – Black History Month – as FMU is the first and only historically Black college or university in the country to have such a program, and it will play its first game Friday afternoon against Southeastern University at St. Thomas University.
All of the Lady Lions' beach volleyball games this season will either be played on the road or one a neutral site – with Friday's opener being considered a neutral site match between the Sun Conference foes.
Unlike indoor volleyball, beach volleyball is played with only two players on the court at a time for each team. Each team will have five different pairs that compete in matches. Each tandem will play a best two-out-of-three match. The first two sets will go to 21 points with the potential third match going to 15 points. In order for a team to win the overall match, at least three of its pairs must win their head-to-head matches.
The Lady Lions enter the beach season as a confident group given that their team is comprised of the same players that won the indoor volleyball Sun Conference tournament championship this past November. Also, some of FMU's players do have beach volleyball experience.
Rachele Mancinelli and
Daphinie Correa both have competitive beach volleyball experience as does
Jazmin Molina, who is served as the indoor team's manager during the fall and is the school's first beach-only player.
Florida Memorial head coach
Marrita Crockett-Moulton, who also coaches the indoor team and is the daughter of the first African-American woman – Rita Crockett – to win a beach volleyball world championship and is a 10-year beach volleyball veteran herself, said she thinks her team can and will hit the ground running.
"I think the biggest carryover for us will be the confidence that our girls have from winning the indoor conference championship," Crockett-Moulton said. "I've seen improvement in the team already after just a week of practice…they're really fast learners."
