By: Eduardo Almaguer / Staff Writer
The Golden Panthers have officially opened the season in dominant fashion.
Florida International University (1-0, SBC 0-0) capitalized on Fairfield’s (0-1, MAAC 0-0) numerous errors to win in three sets, 25-20, 25-16, and 25-19 in their first match of the Cal Molten Classic in Berkeley, Calif.
Middle blocker Andrea Lakovic and outside hitter Jovana Bjelica lived up to their Preseason All-SBC roster selection by posting nine and 11 kills respectively.
Lakovic also had a team-high six blocks. Sabrina Gonzalez, one of two seniors being counted on to lead the team this year, posted an outstanding .700 hitting percentage.
Libero Chanel Araujo led the defense with 13 digs. A key development in the game was the setter position, which had been in question for the majority of practice, may have just been answered. redshirt freshman Jessica Egan almost exclusively held down the setter position as she led the team with 25 assists, 19 more than redshirt junior Renele Forde, who left midway through the first set.
With adrenaline coursing through their bodies, the Panthers jumped to a 6-2 lead in the first set. Three straight errors by FIU helped the Fairfield Stags knot it at 8-8, where the two teams exchanged blows until the score hit 11-10.
Fairfield went on a 4-0 run before head coach Danijela Tomic substituted Forde for Egan in hopes of stopping the bleeding. The team didn’t look back after that. After they closed the deficit to 17-18, Lakovic and Bjelica powered the squad to an 8-2 run on the heels of four combined kills and two service aces from Outside hitter Marija Prsa. A service error by Stag Rachel Romansky sealed the first set for FIU, 25-20.
With Egan starting the second set at the setter position, FIU jumped to another 6-2 lead with two kills from Bjelica. With the help of some more Fairfield sloppiness, the Panthers never lost the lead in this one. After taking a 16-10 lead with the help of an attack error by the Stags, FIU never let the gap drop to less than six points. The team won the set 25-16, its biggest margin of victory of the night.
Fairfield posted eight errors this set, bringing their total to 13 in the game. Egan was the star with 12 assists. Gonzalez, dormant in the first set, led the team with four kills.
Knowing that their backs were up against the wall, Fairfield came out in the third set firing. FIU, however, had no problem keeping pace. After a back and forth, the teams were tied 4-4.
After dropping to 5-8, the Panthers showed patience and let Fairfield do the work for them. The Stags posted a remarkable five straight errors to give FIU a 10-8 lead. After more battling, the Panthers held a slim, one-point lead with a score of 17-16. An overpowering 7-0 run gave the team a set-point position, 24-16.
The Stags tried to make things interesting by scoring three points with the help of a kill and two FIU errors, but ultimately it wasn’t enough: the winning point was scored, fittingly enough, on a Fairfield error to give the Panthers a 3-0 victory.