Final Stats

MIAMI, Fla. - The Coastal Carolina volleyball team opened the 2016 season Friday morning with a decisive 3-0 victory over Florida A&M in the opening match of the Florida International Invitational.

Action from the FIU Invitational continues Friday night as the Chants take on the co-host Panthers in a 7 p.m. match. Live stats and a free live stream of the match will be available as part of CUSA.tv's free preview weekend. Links to both can be found HERE.

Coastal 3 -- FAMU 0 (25-13, 25-21, 25-20)
Coastal dominated the first and third sets, and overcame an eight-point deficit midway through the second set to record the shutout over the Rattlers.

Annayka Legros paced the Chants with 12.5 points on eight kills and seven total blocks, including two solo and five assists. Natasa Savovic added a team-leading 10 kills while hitting .304.

Kate Federico, making her first appearance in a Chanticleer uniform, provided 16 assists while splitting setting duties with Sara Boothe, who tallied 10 assists.

The Chants took control of the opening set early as Leah Hardeman served CCU to a 6-1 lead with a pair of aces. FAMU attempted to recover with a timeout, but Coastal responded with a 6-2 run that forced the Rattlers to use their second timeout of the set while trailing 12-3. Tahleia Bishop closed the game with five kills as the Chants cruised to 25-13 set win.

Coastal fell behind quickly in the second set as FAMU's Maria Yvette Garcia and Radka Dimitrova combined for six kills to post a 17-9 lead for the Rattlers, their largest of the match. A Carla Cahill service ace, however, sparked a 9-1 Coastal run that evened the set at 18 points apiece. Legros and Savovic recorded a pair of kills in the final stretch of the set, and finished the middle frame with five and four kills, respectively.

Savovic turned in another four-kill performance in the closing set, while Bishop and Legros accounted for three blocks each. Coastal led the set from start to finish, and forced the Rattlers to use both of their timeouts while doubling up FAMU 16-8. FAMU managed to bring the set back to a three-point margin with Coastal holding a 20-17 lead, but the Chants closed the match on a 5-3 run.