BATON ROUGE, La. — The weather proved to be a non-factor for the LSU sand volleyball team (13-8), as the Lady Tigers tallied wins in three straight matches against UNO, South Carolina, and Spring Hill in the Battle on the Bayou Tournament at Mango’s Beach Volleyball Club on Saturday.
“When we’re at home, there is a little bit higher standard,” said head coach Russell Brock. “This is home; we know we can defend it, and we want to play well. To come out and get two 5-0 wins against Spring Hill and UNO and then to grind out a win against our SEC opponent is impressive. I couldn’t have asked for a better script.”
In the Lady Tigers’ first match against UNO, Carly Morris and Katarina Raicevic knocked off the Privateers in straight sets on court four, as LSU took a 1-0 lead. On court five, Emma Hiller and Riley Young tallied another point, winning sets 21-9, 21-15 to give the Lady Tigers a 2-0 lead.
LSU continued their dominant performance on the first three courts. The duo of Cati Leak and Callan Molle won in a two-setter 21-6, 21-17 for the Lady Tigers’ third point of the match. Number one pair Katie Lindelow and Mandi Orellana claimed another win in straight sets 21-10, 21-6, and Helen Boyle and Cheyenne Wood closed things out for the team with another straight set win 21-8, 21-10, garnering a 5-0 match win.
Facing SEC foe South Carolina for the first time this season, LSU found themselves in an 0-2 hole early in the second match of the day. Young and Hiller fell in straight sets on court five 21-15, 21-13. On court four, Raicevic and Morris were also defeated in the first set 21-16. The duo battled in the second set, pushing the Gamecocks to the brink of a third set while holding a 22-21 lead. The Lady Tigers couldn’t keep the lead and fell 24-22 to give South Carolina a 2-0 advantage.
Despite the two-point deficit, the LSU rallied on courts two and three to come back and tie the match. Boyle and Wood pulled out a tough two set match on court three 21-16, 21-19 for the Lady Tigers’ first point, and Leak and Molle helped to tie the match, winning in straight sets 21-14, 21-19. Orellana and Lindelow found themselves down a set on court one, but the number one duo responded with a 21-15 second set victory. LSU took advantage of their opportunity, and Lindelow and Orellana took the third set 15-10 as the Lady Tigers grinded out a tough 3-2 victory over the Gamecocks.
“You never want to be in that spot (where you’re down 2-0),” said coach Brock. “That’s where we work so hard with our fours and fives to find a way to get a win there, because it gives you a little buffer. Everybody’s ones, twos and threes are going to be strong. Heading into that knowing that buffer wasn’t there, our backs were against the wall. Katie and Mandi lose the first set, and now they’re in a really bad state, but they just kept playing better and better and fighting harder and harder. We’ve relied on those three teams all year to be really good, and they proved it again today.”
In LSU’s final match of the day, the team claimed a third consecutive win by soundly defeating Spring Hill. Morris and Raicevic gave the Lady Tigers a 1-0 lead on court four, winning in straight sets 21-14, 21-17. Young and Hiller took care of business on court five 21-11, 21-10 to tally another point for LSU.
Molle and Leak won in straight sets on court two 21-8, 21-11 as well as Orellana and Lindelow, who took their match 21-13, 21-10. Boyle and Wood fought out a hard first set 21-19, but the duo came back to seal the 5-0 win for LSU with a 21-10 second set victory.
LSU plays its final two matches of the regular season tomorrow against ULM at 11 a.m. and Tulane at 2 p.m. Both matches will be played at Mango’s Beach Volleyball Club.
“We’re going to come in to it with the same mindset. We want to find a way to win a four or five, and then take two or three of the top three,” said coach Brock. “It’s going to be tough against both those teams. We played ULM up at UAB, and that couldn’t have been much tighter. Three of the games went deep into three sets, and we happened to win it. Tulane’s already beaten us, so we know they’re going to come in with confidence. Hopefully, we’ll battle tomorrow like we did today.”
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Battle on the Bayou Tournament: Day 1 Results
April 18, 2015
South Carolina vs. Spring Hill – South Carolina wins 5-0
No. 1 Paige Wheeler and Megan Kent def. Mallory Raulerson and Megan Haber (21-8, 21-15)
No. 2 Julia Mannisto and Maddie Frome def. Savannah Becnel and Julie Vujonovich (21-16, 21-13)
No. 3 Jade Vitt and Sarah Blomgren def. Amber Perkins and Virginia Hicks (21-15, 21-13)
No. 4 Macie Tendrich and Jade Hayes def. Hannah Masoner and Madison Seuzeneau (21-7, 21-7)
No. 5 Allie Monserez and Koko Williams def. Andria Dytrych and Catherine Milwee (21-7, 21-7)
ULM vs. Tulane – ULM wins 3-2
No. 1 Jackie Wegner and Tea Juric def. Marcela Araya and Michele McNamee (21-19, 21-16)
No. 2 Katie Lindstrom and Hope Pawlik def. Hannah Holmes and Grace Weaver (21-13, 10-21, 15-13)
No. 3 Hadley Swartz and Bayleigh Hoffman def. Lan Nguyen and Madeline Mertz (21-18, 21-18)
No. 4 Courtney Liddle and Annie Shurtz def. Alannah Cullum and Taylor Zaeske (24-26, 21-13, 15-8)
No. 5 Kaitlyn Shearer and Claire Crossfield def. Sarah Stasner and Miah Direll (21-18, 28-26)
LSU vs. UNO – LSU wins 5-0
No. 1 Mandi Orellana and Katie Lindelow def. Cara Sander and Mikayla Wiebe (21-10, 21-6)
No. 2 Cati Leak and Callan Molle def. Brooklyn Frank and Lauren Levy (21-6, 21-17)
No. 3 Helen Boyle and Cheyenne Wood vs. Taylor Berry and Celeste Ramirez (21-8, 21-10)
No. 4 Carly Morris and Katarina Raicevic def. Kelsea Hundtoft and Camila Lau (21-6, 21-16)
No. 5 Riley Young and Emma Hiller def. Ashley Everett and Courtney Roblez (21-9, 21-15)
Spring Hill vs. Tulane – Tulane wins 5-0
No. 1 Jackie Wegner and Tea Juric def. Mallory Raulerson and Megan Haber (21-10, 21-19)
No. 2 Grace Weaver and Miah Direll def. Savannah Becnel and Julie Vujonovich (21-17, 21-8)
No. 3 Lan Nguyen and Madeline Mertz def. Virginia Hicks and Amber Perkins (21-10, 21-11)
No. 4 Courtney Liddle and Annie Shurtz def. Madison Seuzeneau and Hannah Masoner (21-13, 21-8)
No. 5 Christina McAfee and Hannah Holmes def. Catherine Milwee and Kaitlyn Shearer (21-5, 21-3)
LSU vs. South Carolina – LSU wins 3-2
No. 1 Mandi Orellana and Katie Lindelow def. Paige Wheeler and Megan Kent (17-21, 21-15, 15-10)
No. 2 Cati Leak and Callan Molle def. Julia Mannisto and Maddie Frome (21-14, 21-19)
No. 3 Helen Boyle and Cheyenne Wood def. Jade Vitt and Sarah Blomgren (21-16, 21-19)
No. 4 Macie Tendrich and Jade Hayes def. Carly Morris and Katarina Raicevic (21-16, 24-22)
No. 5 Allie Monserez and Koko Williams def. Riley Young and Emma Hiller (21-15, 21-13)
ULM vs. UNO – ULM wins 5-0
No. 1 Michelle McNamee and Marcela Araya def. Cara Sander and Mikayla Wiebe (21-7, 21-11)
No. 2 Katie Lindstrom and Hope Pawlik def. Brooklyn Frank and Lauren Levy (21-14, 21-16)
No. 3 Bayleigh Hoffman and Hadley Swartz def. Taylor Berry and Celeste Ramirez (21-10, 21-13)
No. 4 Alannah Cullum and Taylor Zaeske def. Kelsea Hundtoft and Camila Lau (21-11, 21-11)
No. 5 Claire Crossfield and Kaitlyn Shearer def. Ashley Everett and Courtney Roblez (21-10, 21-9)
LSU vs. Spring Hill – LSU wins 5-0
No. 1 Mandi Orellana and Katie Lindelow def. Mallory Raulerson and Megan Haber (21-13, 21-10)
No. 2 Cati Leak and Callan Molle def. Savannah Becnel and Julie Vujnovich (21-8, 21-11)
No. 3 Helen Boyle and Cheyenne Wood def. Amber Perkins and Virginia Hicks (21-19, 21-10)
No. 4 Carly Morris and Katarina Raicevic def. Hannah Masoner and Madison Seuzeneau (21-14, 21-17)
No. 5 Riley Young and Emma Hiller def. Andria Dytrych and Katelyn Bobinger (21-11, 21-10)
ULM vs. South Carolina – ULM wins 4-1
No. 1 Marcela Araya and Michelle McNamee def. Paige Wheeler and Megan Kent (21-15, 21-14)
No. 2 Katie Lindstrom and Hope Pawlik def. Julia Mannisto and Maddie Frome (21-17, 22-20)
No. 3 Hadley Swartz and Bayleigh Hoffman def. Jade Vitt and Sarah Blomgren (24-22, 21-14)
No. 4 Jade Hayes and Macie Tendrich def. Alannah Cullum and Taylor Zaeske (21-14, 21-18)
No. 5 Claire Crossfield and Kaitlyn Shearer def. Koko Williams and Allie Monserez (21-16, 18-21, 15-12)
Tulane vs. UNO – Tulane wins 5-0
No. 1 Jackie Wegner and Tea Juric def. Cara Sander and Mikayla Wiebe (21-10, 21-9)
No. 2 Grace Weaver and Madeline Mertz def. Brooklyn Frank and Lauren Levy (21-18, 21-18)
No. 3 Lan Nguyen and Hannah Holmes def. Celeste Ramirez and Taylor Berry (21-13, 21-7)
No. 4 Courtney Liddle and Annie Shurtz def. Camila Lau and Kelsea Hundtoft (21-13, 21-9)
No. 5 Miah Direll and Christina McAfee def. Ashley Everett and Courtney Roblez (21-6, 21-8)