FSU Athletic Communications
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The 17th-ranked Florida State volleyball team heads to Orlando on Saturday for a 1 p.m. match in The Venue on the UCF campus against the in-state rival Knights.
The two programs are meeting for the first time since Oct. 12, 2004, when Florida State posted a 3-0 sweep by scores of 30-12, 30-25 and 30-21. That victory marked 16th straight victory over UCF for the Seminoles, who own a 25-4 all-time record in the head-to-head series. The Knights are one of 12 teams that Florida State has posted at least 25 victories against in program history.
The Seminoles have a 38-6 mark in season openers, dating back to the 1972 campaign, winning 14 of 16 matches since the turn of the century. Head Coach Chris Poole has guided Florida State to a 7-1 mark in season openers since taking over the program in 2008.
“I have a lot of respect for the UCF program and their staff,” said Poole. “This is a very good program that will give us excellent competition to open the season. I believe that playing great teams will give us an opportunity to identify our weaknesses and allow us to focus on improvement through the non-conference matches. The Orlando-area has been a strong recruiting base for our program {Hailey Luke (Altamonte Springs) / Christina Ambrose (Winter Park)} and we are excited to take some of those players back home for a match.”
Florida State, which ended the 2015 season 25-8 overall after reaching the second round of the NCAA Tournament, is in search of its 275th victory against an in-state program since 1972. UCF is one of four Sunshine State programs that the Seminoles will face this season along with Florida A&M (Sept. 9), Florida (Sept. 14) and Miami (Sept. 23 / Oct. 19).
FSU will make its official home debut on Sept. 8 when it squares off against Baylor as part of the Home2 Suites by Hilton-Tallahassee Seminole Tournament.
For more information visit Facebook (Florida State Seminoles Volleyball), Twitter (FSU_Volleyball) and Instagram (FSUvolleyball).
--#Noles--
The two programs are meeting for the first time since Oct. 12, 2004, when Florida State posted a 3-0 sweep by scores of 30-12, 30-25 and 30-21. That victory marked 16th straight victory over UCF for the Seminoles, who own a 25-4 all-time record in the head-to-head series. The Knights are one of 12 teams that Florida State has posted at least 25 victories against in program history.
The Seminoles have a 38-6 mark in season openers, dating back to the 1972 campaign, winning 14 of 16 matches since the turn of the century. Head Coach Chris Poole has guided Florida State to a 7-1 mark in season openers since taking over the program in 2008.
“I have a lot of respect for the UCF program and their staff,” said Poole. “This is a very good program that will give us excellent competition to open the season. I believe that playing great teams will give us an opportunity to identify our weaknesses and allow us to focus on improvement through the non-conference matches. The Orlando-area has been a strong recruiting base for our program {Hailey Luke (Altamonte Springs) / Christina Ambrose (Winter Park)} and we are excited to take some of those players back home for a match.”
Florida State, which ended the 2015 season 25-8 overall after reaching the second round of the NCAA Tournament, is in search of its 275th victory against an in-state program since 1972. UCF is one of four Sunshine State programs that the Seminoles will face this season along with Florida A&M (Sept. 9), Florida (Sept. 14) and Miami (Sept. 23 / Oct. 19).
FSU will make its official home debut on Sept. 8 when it squares off against Baylor as part of the Home2 Suites by Hilton-Tallahassee Seminole Tournament.
For more information visit Facebook (Florida State Seminoles Volleyball), Twitter (FSU_Volleyball) and Instagram (FSUvolleyball).
--#Noles--