CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas - Entering its third year of beach volleyball competition, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi opens its 2018 season at the UNF Invitational this weekend, with scheduled contests against UNC-Wilmington, No. 13 Georgia State, No. 17 Florida Atlantic and hosts North Florida.
The Islanders open play against UNCWÂ on Friday at 9:30 AM before matching up with the Panthers in a 3:30 PM match later in the afternoon. The Blue and Green will be facing all four of its opponents for the first time in school history this Friday and Saturday, finishing day two of the Invitational against UNF and FAU at 11:30 AM and 1:30 PM respectively.
The approaching 2018 season marks Head Coach
Gayle Stammer's first season on the Island, as the former professional beach and indoor player brings over a decade of experience coaching in the sand. This year's roster brings a number of fresh faces to the Islanders' lineup, with nine freshman getting their first year of experience playing beach for the Blue and Green.
Indoor standouts
Madi Fitzsimmons and
Madison Green return to the sand for their junior seasons, as the two accumulated three wins for Corpus Christi the previous year while playing in the No. 1 pairing. Fitzsimmons and Green bring the bulk of the Islanders' experience this year, with 10 players due to make their debut for the Blue and Green in 2018.
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