Newcomer of the Week:
FGCU women’s basketball senior Dolly Cairns collected back-to-back Atlantic Sun Conference Newcomer of the Week honors.
Head coach Karl Smesko had a lot of praise for Cairns.
“Dolly and Maddie were both fantastic this week. Dolly made great decisions offensively. She also has been making a lot of defensive plays,” he said.
Cairns guided FGCU to a Top 25 win over No. 18 North Carolina Sunday in the third-place game of the Gulf Coast Showcase.
Cairns produced a team-leading 18 points against the Tar Heels, while going 4 for 7 from deep. She nailed a transition three to tie the game at 61 a piece with 4:19 remaining.
Cairns is averaging a team-leading 13 points per game, while shooting .383 from distance this season. Her 3-point percentage ranks fifth across the conference.
She had 13 points against No. 5 Iowa and added 15 in the Eagles opening round win over Delaware, while adding a season-high five threes against the Blue Hens.
The transfer from Rhode Island nearly recorded a triple-double against the Blue Hens, adding seven assists and five steals to her 15 points.
Cairns has scored 13 or more points in five consecutive contests.
Beach Volleyball:
Head coach Chris Sweat announced the additions of Erin Miller, Alexis Keeter, Ava Lilliguist and Mollie Thomas to FGCU’s beach volleyball program.
Miller is from Lakeland, Florida and is currently a senior at Lakeland Senior High School.
Miller earned a spot on the beach and indoor All-County first-team in 2022 and 2023. She has recorded an impressive 1,000 career kills indoors.
Miller was her high school’s MVP for 2022 and 2023 for both indoor and beach volleyball.
“Erin’s physicality jumped off the page the first time I saw her play. She wants the challenge of being a premier blocker at this level,” said head coach Chris Sweat.
Keeter currently attends Grafton High School and is from Yorktown, Virginia. She recorded an impressive 189 kills indoors, while recording a total of 1,235 career kills.
She has earned a spot on the First Team All-District, First Team All-Region, and First Team All-State, while also being named the Tidewater Player of the Year and Peninsula District Co-Player of the Year.
Coach Sweat can’t wait to see Keeter develop.
“Alexis continues to take her game to new heights every time I get the opportunity to see her play. She is very athletic and has a great mind for the beach game,” he said.
Lilliguist is currently a senior at Vero Beach High School and will join the Eagles in the fall of 2024.
She was tabbed for MVP in 2022 and 2023, while receiving All-Area team honors.
Coach Sweat had a lot of praise for Lilliguist.
“Ava is very athletic and runs such a fast offense to keep the other team guessing. In the beach world, offenses are evolving every year, and Ava loves to bring high-quality offense to the table,” he said.
Mollie Thomas is from Marshfield, Missouri and is currently attending Marshfield High School.
Thomas has earned a few accolades in her career, including All-State, All-District, Academic, and All-Conference honors.
“Mollie was an all-state indoor player whose talents translate very well to the beach. She is solid in every facet of the game and will continue to grow as a player at FGCU,” said head coach Chris Sweat.
FGCU beach volleyball finished 19-18 last season, while making it to the Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament finals. For more information, visit www.wgcu.org.
Women’s Basketball:
FGCU women’s basketball will aim to continue their impressive start to the season as they face the Ave Maria Gyrenes tonight at 7 p.m. at Alico Arena.
The Eagles enter the matchup at 5-2 after going 2-1 in the Gulf Coast Showcase.
FGCU is 5-0 all-time against the Gyrenes, beating them 88-35 a season ago.
The Eagles are the only mid-major program with four straight Top 25 finishes in the AP Poll over the last four seasons, as they have finished in the Top 25 in five out of the last six seasons.
FGCU will aim to extend that record this season. For more information, visit www.wgcu.org.
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