BATON ROUGE, La. — The number one pair of Mandi Orellana and Katie Lindelow travel to Gulf Shores, Alabama this weekend to participate in the AVCA National Championships May 1-3.
The duo competes on Friday against Loyola Marymount at 1 p.m. and against UAB at 3 p.m. Orellana and Lindelow play their remaining matches against Arizona and ULM on Saturday for a chance to be selected in Sunday’s 16-team elimination bracket.
“We like that we’re playing teams we’ve seen before,” said head coach Russell Brock. “The flip side is they’ve seen us as well. We fully expect all those matches to be competitive and we like our chances going in. We know those are teams we can compete and win against.”
The pair looks to avenge their loss against UAB’s Kiriana Hirini and Bethanie Thomas from the Blazer Beach Duals Tournament, while this marks the first time that the two will play against Loyola Marymount.
“I haven’t seen (Loyola) on film, but I’ve talked to some coaches and got scouting reports and we know they’re really talented,” said Brock. “The fact that they’ve played (No. 1 ranked) USC and beat them; we know that they are formidable and we get them right away. I’m glad we have that first, and we get to see how well we can match up against them.”
CBS Sports Network will televise portions of the matches in a broadcast that will air on May 23 at 1 p.m. ET.
“I hope (the big stage) brings a higher level of intensity out of them,” said coach Brock. “I think both Katie and Mandi are very intense and talented players. Coming down the stretch, there were a few matches where their backs were against the wall and they needed to pull through to keep their hopes alive for playing in this event or for their team and they really stepped up. They’ve had a great record of performing well in high-pressure situations against formidable opponents. I have a great feeling heading into the weekend.”
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Friday, May 1
vs. Loyola Marymount 1 p.m.
vs. UAB 3 p.m.
Saturday, May 2
vs. ULM 12 p.m.
vs. Arizona 2 p.m.