Florida Atlantic Beach Volleyball Duo Denisse Morgenstern and Shantel Starling Named Conference USA Honorees
- 15 Florida Atlantic beach volleyball's top pair of Denisse Morgenstern and Shantel Starling were named the Conference USA Co-Pair of the Week, announced by the league office on...
- The honor marks the fourth Conference USA weekly award for the Sandy Owls this season and the first career weekly honor for both Morgenstern, and Starling.
- Morgenstern and Starling had a perfect 4-0 record at the Alki Beach Invitational, earning three straight-set sweeps and one three-set victory.
BOCA RATON, Fla. – No. 15 Florida Atlantic beach volleyball’s top pair of Denisse Morgenstern and Shantel Starling were named the Conference USA Co-Pair of the Week, announced by the league office on Tuesday.
The honor marks the fourth Conference USA weekly award for the Sandy Owls this season and the first career weekly honor for both Morgenstern, and Starling.
Morgenstern and Starling had a perfect 4-0 record at the Alki Beach Invitational, earning three straight-set sweeps and one three-set victory.
On Friday, the duo opened the weekend with a straight-set win over Oregon, 21-19, 21-14.
They followed with a dominant sweep over No. 19 Washington’s top pair, winning 21-13, 21-14.
On Saturday, Morgenstern and Starling defeated Portland’s court one pair 21-19, 21-16 in their third straight-set sweep of the weekend.
The pair closed the weekend with a three-set win against Boise State on court one, prevailing 21-17, 21-23, 15-13.
The Sandy Owls enter postseason play as the No. 1 seed in the Conference USA Championship, opening play on Thursday, April 23, against the play-in game winner between No. 8 Tarleton State and No. 9 Sam Houston at Sugar Beach in Youngsville, Louisiana.
Tulane’s Emma Morris and Katie Hansen were also named Conference USA Co-Pair of the Week for the same period.
Head Coach Steve Grotowski was named Conference USA Coach of the Year in 2025 after leading Florida Atlantic to a 21-14 record and a perfect 4-0 mark in the Conference USA Championship, securing the program’s third all-time conference title.
Ashleigh Adams and Marketa Svozilova were named Conference USA Pair of the Year in 2025, tying the program record for single-season pair wins with a 25-5 record.
Adams and Svozilova earned all of their wins on court one, opening the season with a program-record 13-1 start, including a perfect 9-0 season-opening winning streak.
The duo was named Conference USA Pair of the Week a league-record four consecutive times in February and March 2025.