{"id":423621,"date":"2026-10-09T20:32:16","date_gmt":"2026-10-09T20:32:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/423621\/"},"modified":"2026-10-09T20:32:16","modified_gmt":"2026-10-09T20:32:16","slug":"owls-set-for-american-tipoff-in-tampa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/423621\/","title":{"rendered":"Owls set for American Tipoff in Tampa"},"content":{"rendered":"

BOCA RATON, Fla. \u2013 LeAnn Freeland<\/a>, Florida Atlantic women’s basketball head coach, along with senior guard Grace Carstensen<\/a> and junior guard Erin Rodgers<\/a> will be spotlighted at the American\u00a0Tipoff\u00a0on Sunday and Monday, October 11-12 at the JW Marriott Tampa Water Street in Tampa, Florida.
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\nThe Owls will be featured on the ESPN+ live show, beginning on Monday, Oct. 12 at 8:05 a.m., hosted by Maria Trivelpiece and analyst Brooke Weisbrod.
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\nCarstensen, from Hinsdale, Illinois, was one of the nation’s top 3-point threats during her junior season in Paradise.
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\nCarstensen saw action in every FAU contest and made 20 starts for the Owls in 2025-26. The senior led the team in 3-point field goal percentage (.416), finishing 24th in the nation and second in the American, in addition to leading the team in made 3-point field goals (69) and 3-pointers per game (2.2), both of which ranked fifth in the league.
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\nShe produced a team second-best 11 double-figure scoring performances, including a career-best 19 points and a career-high two blocks in her Florida Atlantic debut in the Owls’ season opener against Florida Memorial on Nov. 4. Carstensen also finished the season with a career-high three steals vs. FGCU (Dec. 12), tied a career-best five made 3-pointers against South Florida (Jan. 24), and collected a career-high four rebounds and scored 14 points at Tulsa (Jan. 27).
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\nErin Rodgers<\/a>, from Lawrenceville, Georgia, was a dominant offensive force for the Owls as a sophomore in Boca Raton.
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\nRodgers played in 22 games and made 10 starts for the Owls in 2025-26. The junior led the Owls in scoring, averaging 9.8 points per game. She recorded nine double-digit scoring performances, including registering three consecutive 20-point games, marking the first Owl to do so since the 2023-24 season. Rodgers recorded a career-best 25 points, including a career-high 3-of-5 from beyond the arc, in the Owls’ home win over UAB on Feb. 7. She also registered her second career double-double, scoring 16 points and pulling down a season-best 11 rebounds at East Carolina on Feb. 17.
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\nFlorida Atlantic, picked to finish eighth in the league’s preseason poll, will open the 2026-27 season on Monday, Nov. 2 when the Owls visit Miami at the Watsco Center.
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\n2026-27 WOMEN’S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE
\nClick here<\/a> to view the Owls’ 2026-27 schedule.
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\n2026-27 ROSTER
\nClick here<\/a> to view the Owls’ 2026-27 roster.
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\nSEASON TICKETS ON SALE
\nSeason tickets and season ticket renewals are on sale and can be purchased here<\/a> or by calling the FAU ticket office at 1-866-FAU-OWLS. Single game tickets will go on sale at a later date.
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\nFOLLOW THE OWLS
\nKeep up with everything Florida Atlantic women’s basketball at FAUSports.com<\/a> and on social media on X<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, and Facebook<\/a>.
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