Courtesy: UNOPrivateers.com http://www.unoprivateers.com Lindsey Loyd (above) had nine kills for the Privateers in the SBC semifinal loss to FIU.

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. - Sun Belt regular season champion Florida International dispatched the University of New Orleans 3-0 (25-16, 25-17, 25-16) on Friday night in the semifinals of the SBC Volleyball Championships.

FIU (30-2) entered the match with the nation's fourth-longest win streak at 22 matches and has now reached 30 wins on the season after winning their 23rd consecutive match.

The offensive performance of SBC Player of the Year Yarimar Rosa and Andrea Lakovic were too much to overcome for UNO (20-12).

After two sets, the pair had combined for 18 kills and just two errors on 27 attacks. By the end of the match, Rosa had 14 kills with just two errors with Lakovic tallying 11 kills and just a single error.

The Privateers were led by Maria Szivos, who totaled 11 kills. Lindsey Loyd added nine kills with Hajnalka Molnar passing around 24 assists.

In the opening set, FIU took their first substantial lead of the match at 9-6 forcing head coach Jozsef Forman to call a timeout. Following the break in the action, UNO scored 3 of 4 to get within one at 10-9 before the Golden Panthers responded with five straight points to take a commanding 15-9 advantage.

FIU's offense was crisp, hitting at a .375 clip for the stanza. Rosa had five kills on eight attacks with Lakovic connecting on all four efforts on way to a 25-16 victory.

UNO jumped ahead early in the second set, staking to a 6-4 edge. The momentum would quickly swing in the favor of the Golden Panthers, who scored six straight points to hop in the driver's seat with a 10-6 lead.

FIU remained ahead for the rest of the stanza, taking a 2-0 lead into the break after claiming the second set by a score of 25-17.

There would be no bouncing back from a 2-0 deficit for the Privateers on this day as the Golden Panthers scored four straight to begin the third set. UNO trimmed the lead to two at 8-6, but that would be as close as they would get for the remainder of the match with FIU closing out the third set 25-16.

The Golden Panthers advance to the conference title game on Saturday afternoon, where they will face the winner of the semifinal between Middle Tennessee and Western Kentucky. The Privateers will return home to wrap up their season on Friday, Nov. 28 for a 7 p.m. contest against New Mexico, which will double as 'Senior Day'.

Prior to the match the team will honor Loyd, Kimberly Watson, Kaley Hubbard and Heather Ford. Though juniors athletically, Hubbard and Ford will graduate this year before proceeding forward in their pursuit of graduate degrees.