TAMPA, FL – On the final day of the Tampa Volleyball Classic, the Francis Marion University women's volleyball program produced a split on Saturday (Sept. 5), rallying to a 3-2 victory over Florida Southern College before dropping a 3-0 decision to Oklahoma Baptist University at the Bob Martinez Athletics Center on the campus of the University of Tampa.
The Patriots (4-3) will travel back to Palmetto State to begin preparations for the start of Conference Carolinas play. FMU will head on the road for its eighth straight match to face Ferrum College on Wednesday, Sept. 9 at 6:30 p.m.
Against Florida Southern (4-2) of the Sunshine State Conference (SSC), the Patriots rallied back to win the final two sets to claim victory in the five-set thriller. Sophomore middle blocker
McKayla Stockwell produced a career-best 11 kills on a .320 hitting percentage with six blocks (two solo). Graduate student middle blocker
Vanessa Blake also contributed a career-high 10 kills on a .316 clip with four blocks. Senior outside hitter
Madilyn Gartner and sophomore outside hitter
Haleigh Kamer each totaled nine kills, while senior opposite hitter
Camryn Faggart finished with eight kills, one block, and three digs.
Sophomore setter
Aubrey Johnson directed the offense with a double-double after tallying 42 assists, five kills, two aces, three blocks, and 13 digs. Defensively, freshman libero
Alyssa Whiteside delivered another stellar performance with 15 digs and a trio of service aces. Kamer also had an effective defensive performance with nine digs and one block.
Against Oklahoma Baptist (7-2) of the Great American Conference (GAC), FMU suffered a loss via a sweep against the reigning champions of the GAC and a 2025 NCAA Tournament team. Despite leading in a majority of statistical categories, the Patriots were unable to overcome 10 service aces by the Bisons.
Faggart led Francis Marion with 10 kills while adding a pair of digs. Gartner totaled eight kills on a .318 hitting percentage and recorded seven digs. Stockwell contributed seven kills on a .500 clip with three blocks, while Kamer also produced seven kills with 11 digs and four blocks. Johnson registered a second-straight double-double with 29 assists and 11 digs.
Whiteside recorded double-digit digs for a third consecutive match, securing a season-high 16 in the FMU's final match on Saturday.
