Florida A&M University Women’s Volleyball will compete in the Dolphin Volleyball Classic presented by Hampton Inn East Regency from Sept. 4-6 at Swisher Gymnasium on the campus of Jacksonville University in Jacksonville, Florida. The event will feature Florida A&M, Connecticut, Coastal Carolina and Jacksonville.
Florida A&M enters the weekend with a 1-2 record and a 0-0 Southwestern Athletic Conference record. The Rattlers opened the season at the Betty K. Austin Invitational hosted by Alabama A&M in Huntsville, Alabama. Florida A&M lost to N.C. Central and Delaware State before defeating Maryland Eastern Shore.
Florida A&M Volleyball schedule
Florida A&M will face Coastal Carolina at 4:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 4, at Swisher Gymnasium. The Rattlers will play at Jacksonville at 5 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5, at the same venue. The event will conclude Sunday, Sept. 6, at 2 p.m. at Swisher Gymnasium.
Whitfield leads Florida A&M in early-season statistics
Sydney Whitfield has 45 kills and is tied for 48th nationally in that category. She is averaging 4.09 kills per set, which leads the Southwestern Athletic Conference, and has a conference-best 4.18 points-per-set average with 46 total points. Whitfield is a senior outside hitter from Magnolia, Texas.
Makenzie Taylor leads the Southwestern Athletic Conference with 84 assists and is averaging 7.64 assists per set. She also has five service aces. As a team, Florida A&M has recorded 364 attacks and 129 kills in three matches.
Tamia Coleman and Iyonnie Sanford have combined for 25 total blocks, with Coleman recording 15, including 11 assisted blocks. Sophomore libero Kelly Kelsick leads Florida A&M with 33 digs and is averaging 3.00 digs per set.
Florida A&M, Connecticut, Coastal Carolina and Jacksonville are not ranked in this week’s AVCA Division I Coaches Poll Top 25. Florida A&M and Connecticut have met once previously, with Connecticut winning 3-0 on Sept. 13, 2008, in East Lansing, Michigan.
Coastal Carolina leads the all-time series with Florida A&M 2-0 and won the most recent meeting 3-0 on Aug. 26, 2016, in Miami. Jacksonville leads its all-time series with Florida A&M 7-5 dating to 2010 and won the last meeting 3-2 on Sept. 20, 2025, in Jacksonville. Florida A&M’s last win over Jacksonville was a 3-1 victory in Tallahassee on Sept. 7, 2024.
Head coach Gokhan Yilmaz has begun his ninth year at the helm in Tallahassee and his eighth season coaching because Florida A&M did not compete during the 2020 COVID-19 season. Florida A&M will host the Florida A&M Tournament Sept. 10-12 at the Lawson Center in Tallahassee. The tournament will welcome teams from Louisiana, FIU and Hampton.
Source: Original report