Miami Gardens, Fla. - Two sports have their highly anticipated home openers this weekend, as Women's Volleyball plays on Friday, and Football plays on Saturday.
Women's Volleyball
Teams: Webber International University (4-4) at #21 St. Thomas University (4-5)
Date: Friday, September 4 | 4:00 pm
Location: Miami Gardens, Fla. | Fernandez Family Center
Media Coverage: Live Video | Live Stats
Defending the FFC
Women's Volleyball has played great at home over the last few years, as they have not lost a game in the Fernandez Family Center since August 17, 2023. The Bobcats are on a 37-game winning streak at the FFC. They look to continue to carry this momentum with the new renovations of the Fernandez Family Center.
Starting Sun Conference Play
The Bobcats look to open up Sun Conference play after facing one of the toughest schedules in the country to start the season. St. Thomas has won five-straight Sun Conference Regular Season Championships and four-straight Sun Conference Tournament Championships. The Bobcats have tested themselves early in the 2026 season, as five of their nine opponents are ranked. They had a signature win during their opening weekend, as they defeated the defending national champions, Indiana Wesleyan. This season, Raya Mlyakova leads the Bobcats in kills (119), Payton Bertke leads the Bobcats in assists (327), and Isabela Aviloff leads the Bobcats in digs (120).
Matchup History
The Bobcats lead the all-time series against the Warriors, 28-15. St. Thomas is currently on a 16-game win streak against Webber International, which first started in 2019. Last year, the Bobcats swept the Warriors in their first matchup in Babson Park and won the second matchup at home in four sets.
Scouting Webber International
The Warriors are playing their first Sun Conference game as well. Last year, Webber International finished seventh in the conference standings, but they have had a much better overall start in non-conference play this year. Hailey Mull leads Webber in kills (64), Katelyn Bobo leads Webber in assists (151), and Alejandra Aponte leads Webber in digs (173).
Football
Teams: University of Fort Lauderdale (0-1) at #16 St. Thomas University (1-0)
Date: Saturday, September 5 | 12:00 pm
Location: Miami Gardens, Fla. | AutoNation Field
Media Coverage: Live Video | Live Stats
Drew Davis Era Starts With a Win
Drew Davis got his first win as the Head Coach for St. Thomas last Thursday, in a 27-6 victory over Cumberland University. The running game was the focal point last week, as the Bobcats had 39 rushing attempts compared to 25 passing attempts offensively. The Bobcats controlled the line of scrimmage very well, as they rushed for 181 yards offensively, while only allowing six total yards on the ground defensively. The Bobcats' defensive line also had six sacks throughout the game.
Sun Conference Players of the Week
Two Bobcats took home Player of the Week honors, as announced by the Sun Conference on Monday. Isaiah Lopez won Offensive Player of the Week, in which he rushed for 162 yards in 17 attempts, with 2 touchdowns. He also added one reception for 5 yards. Lopez's longest rush last week was for 61 yards on the first play of a drive, which was his second touchdown of the night. On the other side of the ball, Kisler Wilson won Defensive Player of the Week. Wilson had seven total tackles, with 3.5 tackles for loss. He also added 2 sacks and one quarterback hurry.
Matchup History
The Bobcats are 2-0 all-time against the Eagles. The two schools faced each other last year, in which St. Thomas won, 55-7. Offensively, the Bobcats have averaged 62.5 points per game against Fort Lauderdale.
Scouting Fort Lauderdale
The Eagles dropped their first game of the season last Saturday to Webber International, 14-20. Fort Lauderdale had a 14-0 lead, but gave up 20 unanswered points. Defensively, the Eagles allowed 417 yards of Webber offense. The Eagles were able to force five fumbles, and Fort Lauderdale recovered three of them.
