Weekend Replay: Softball sweeps North Texas, beach volleyball dominates

A.J. Belans is now second on the team with seven home runs this season.

By Joel Delgado ’12 MS ’17 

After suffering a sweep at the hands of UTEP the previous week, the FIU softball team traveled to the Lone Star State to face Conference USA foe North Texas and completed a sweep of their own to get back on track.

The Panthers (21-17, 7-5 C-USA) offense pounded the Mean Green on their home field, outscoring them 21-4 over three games to complete the trio of victories. Sophomore infielder A.J. Belans had a big hand in the offensive explosion, finishing the series with three home runs and eight RBI.

FIU will return home for a three-game set with conference leader and state rival No. 23 Florida Atlantic, starting with a doubleheader at FIU Softball Stadium on April 9. The opening game, which will be televised on FSN, starts at 1 p.m.

For more information on FIU softball, go to FIUSports.com.

FIU BASEBALL WINS SERIES VS. UTSA

The FIU baseball team also traveled to Texas over the weekend for a three game series against the UTSA Roadrunners in San Antonio.

After splitting the first two games of the series, the Panthers offense came to life in the sixth and seventh innings on Sunday afternoon en route to an 8-4 victory to win the series.

Infielder Rey Perez hit a two-run double on Sunday to help the Panthers defeat the UTSA Roadrunners 8-4.

The Roadrunners took the lead in the fifth inning with a pair of runs scored, but their lead was short-lived as the Panthers (15-16, 4-5 C-USA) responded with three runs in the sixth inning and four more runs in the seventh to take a comfortable five-run lead.

Outfielder Kenny Meimerstorf led the Panthers with a pair of hits, including a three-run home run in the seventh inning, and four RBI in the win.

The Panthers return home this weekend for a three-game series against Old Dominion starting April 8 at FIU Baseball Stadium.

For more information on FIU baseball, go to FIUSports.com.

BEACH VOLLEYBALL TAKES DOWN NO. 8 GEORGIA STATE

The No. 10-ranked FIU beach volleyball team completed the two-day FIU Surf & Turf Invitational with four victories in five matches, including a big 3-2 win over No. 8 Georgia State on Saturday.

The duo of Savannah Davis and Natalia Giron clinched the win for the Panthers in the No. 5 slot, defeating GSU’s Jessica Fourspring and Alexis Elmurr 21-14, 21-19 to close out the invitational.

FIU also picked up wins against South Carolina, Tulane and Florida Atlantic and improved their record to 9-7 this season.

FIU will be back in action April 9 to wrap up their regular season with matches against TCU and Grand Canyon. Both matches will be played at Siesta Key, Florida.

For more information on FIU beach volleyball, go to FIUSports.com.