FLORENCE, SC – Led by senior middleblocker Caroline Lucas, Francis Marion University registered two solo blocks and 22 block assists to sweep past Augusta University 25-19, 25-23, and 25-18, Tuesday evening (Oct. 21) in non-conference volleyball action.
 
Francis Marion improves to 14-8 and will return to Conference Carolinas play this weekend with a pair of road matches.  FMU will play at Shorter University on Friday at 6 p.m. in a battle of the top teams in the conference (each with 11-1 marks), before the Patriots will play at Young Harris College on Saturday at 2 p.m.
 
Junior outside hitter Madilyn Gartner, the reigning conference Player of the Week, paced FMU with 16 kills, six blocks, and a .317 hitting percentage.  Lucas added 12 kills, eight blocks, and a .355 hitting percentage, while freshman McKayla Stockwell recorded five blocks and junior Camryn Faggart four blocks.  In the process, Lucas moved past Megan Mooney for 16th place on the FMU career blocks list with 280.
 
Patriot freshman setter Aubrey Johnson handed out 31 assists, and red-shirt junior Kayla Clayworth dug up a team-high 14 balls, while senior libero Katie Floyd had 12 digs and junior Allison Miller 10.
 
Lauren Posa led Augusta (17-4) with 11 kills.  Aided by the blocks, the FMU defense held the Jaguars to a .109 team hitting percentage.
 
In the opening set, Francis Marion sprinted to an 8-3 lead as Gartner pounded out three kills.  The margin remained at five points at 11-6, 18-13, and at 20-15 following a bad set by the Jaguars. Lucas followed with a kill to put FMU up 21-16, but Augusta answered with back-to-back points to close to within 21-18.  A pair of kills by Gartner sandwiched around a service ace by Lucas stretched the margin to 24-18.  Following an Augusta point, Johnson closed out the set with a kill for a 25-19 decision.  FMU never trailed in the opening set.
 
The Jaguars reversed play in the second set by racing to a 5-1 advantage and later led 10-4.  Augusta led 20-15, but Francis Marion ran off five straight points with Lucas on the serving line to knot the score at 20-20.  FMU took its first lead of the set at 23-22 on a kill by Miller.  Faggart and Stockwell combined on a block to up the margin to 24-22.  Following a Jaguar point, Faggart closed out the set at 25-23 with a kill down the line.
 
After Augusta tallied the opening point of the third set, Francis Marion ran off four in a row, and later led 9-4 following a kill by Lucas.  The Jaguars closed to within 9-7, but FMU answered with six consecutive points – including two blocks by Gartner and Lucas – to swell the margin to 15-7 and force a timeout.  Augusta cut the deficit to 18-14, but three kills by Lucas helped push the margin to 24-16 before Gartner provided the ending kill on match point.