Augusta swept by Francis Marion as Patriots’ block dominates

By Rodrigo Burgos Avila | Editor in chief

FLORENCE, S.C. — In a night where nothing seemed to go right for Augusta University, the Jaguars were swept by Francis Marion inside the Smith University Center on Tuesday, October 21. The loss was eerily reminiscent of that Tuesday matchup against Emmanuel earlier in the season, another night where the Jags struggled to find rhythm.

Francis Marion’s block set the tone early, disrupting Augusta’s offensive flow and keeping the Jaguars out of system for much of the match. The Patriots took the opening set 25–19 behind key contributions from hitters Madilyn Gartner and Caroline Lucas, who both found success challenging Augusta’s block and targeting seams in the defense.

Augusta appeared to find its footing early in the second set, jumping out to a 10–4 lead thanks to kills from Sofiia Snitsarevych and Lauren Posa, along with an ace from Mia Saavedra. Post was a steady presence at the net, finding creative ways to score against Francis Marion’s block.

“You can’t always look for the big bounce kill when the tip behind the block is open, or tooling the block or hitting high hands as well,” Posa said. “At the end of the day, a point is a point no matter what way the hitter scores it.”

But the tone shifted midway through the frame when Augusta’s Hunter MacFarland collided with a line judge while chasing a ball, leading to a lengthy delay as the official received aid. When play resumed, Francis Marion surged back, using a 6–1 run to erase Augusta’s lead. The Patriots’ block continued to frustrate the Jaguars late, as FMU came back to take the set 25–23 and a 2–0 match lead.

From there, the Patriots controlled the third set from start to finish, jumping ahead 15–7 and never looking back. Lucas and Gartner remained unstoppable at the net, helping Francis Marion close out the sweep with a 25–18 win.

Posa led the Jaguars with 11 kills on an efficient .450 hitting percentage. Sofiia Snitsarevych followed with eight kills (.150), while Lauren Nelson added seven (.087). Mia Saavedra tallied 21 assists to orchestrate the offense, and Giulia Rodrigues anchored the back row with 14 digs.

For the Patriots, Gartner, the reigning Conference Carolinas Player of the Week, led all players with 16 kills on .351 hitting and added two blocks. Lucas followed closely with 12 kills at a .355 clip and five total blocks, while setter Aubrey Johnson distributed 30 assists.

The Patriots’ defense proved decisive, outblocking Augusta 13–5 and holding the Jaguars to a .118 hitting percentage, while FMU hit a sharp .282 as a team.

Despite the tough loss, Posa said the teams remains focused on learning and improving.

“I think as a team, we need to take into account and respect and respect the the teams we are facing,” she said. “We need to bring our best game from the first point of each set and continue it though the match.”

With the loss, Augusta falls to 17–4 overall, while Francis Marion improves to 14–8. The Jaguars will now travel to Macon on Thursday, Oct. 23, for a Peach Belt Conference matchup against Middle Georgia.

Contact Rodrigo Burgos Avila at rburgosavila@augusta.edu.

Note: At the top of the page, Lauren Posa (9) attacks at the net during a match earlier in the season. Post led the Jags with 11 kills against Francis Marion on Tuesday night.