GULF SHORES, Ala. – The No. 5 LSU Beach Volleyball team lost two of three matches on Sunday as it went 3-2 on the weekend at UAB’s March to May Tournament in Gulf Shores.
After winning both their Saturday matches against No. 13 Georgia State and No. 7 Grand Canyon, the Tigers lost to No. 11 FAU, 3-2, and No. 1 UCLA, 4-1, while beating No. 15 South Carolina, 4-1, on Sunday. The team finished 3-2 on the weekend and improved to 16-2 overall on the season.
“Obviously yesterday was a huge day,” said head coach Russell Brock. “We knew coming into today that it would be tough. Three tough matchups after two tough ones the previous day is always going to be challenging. We’ve said all along we wanted to find out where we can be better. We needed this to do that. You never hope for or want it, but it’s an opportunity to see where we can improve before next weekend.”
Next up, the Tigers will host the LSU Beach Invitational on March 26 and 27. LSU will play Tampa, ULM, No. 4 Florida State, No. 3 TCU and Houston Baptist throughout the weekend.
The day started early for LSU with an 8 a.m. match against No. 11 FAU. The Tigers fought hard, but eventually lost the match, 3-2. The Court 4 pair of Kelli Greene Agnew and Grace Seits put LSU up in the match, winning 21-13 and 21-17. The Tigers were unable to win on Court 5 as Ellie Shank and Sierra Caffo lost, 21-12 and 21-19.
FAU took a 2-1 lead in the match after beating the Court 1 duo of Ashlyn Rasnick-Pope and Bella Bauman. Rasnick-Pope and Bauman won the first set, 21-17, but lost the next two, 21-17 and 15-8. The Court 2 pair of Kylie Deberg and Parker Bracken also lost, 21-12 and 21-17. The Tigers were able to pick up another point on Court 3 as Holly Carlton and Reilly Allred won, 21-16 and 21-19, but ultimately lost the duel to the owls.
The Tigers were able to bounce back against No. 15 South Carolina, winning 4-1. Courts 4 and 5 both won to set the stage for LSU to bounce back. On Court 4, Seits and Greene-Agnew won 21-17 and 21-15. On Court 5, Shank and Caffo won both sets by a score of 21-17.
Court 1 cliched the match for LSU as Rasnick-Pope and Bauman won 21-14 and 21-17. The Court 2 duo of Bracken and Deberg won the first set, 21-15, but lost the next two, 21-18 and 21-13. On Court 3, Carlton and Allred lost the first set, 21-18, but won the next two, 21-14 and 15-13.
The final match of the weekend pinned No. 5 LSU against No. 1 UCLA as the Bruins came out on top, 4-1, against the Tigers. The Tigers shook up the lineup, but only the Court 5 pair of Seits and Shank were able to win both sets by a score of 21-19. Court 4 featured Caffo and Greene Agnew, but the due lost 21-19 and 21-15.
The Court 1 duo of Rasnick-Pope and Bauman lost, 21-16 and 21-17. The normal pairs on Courts 2 and 3 for LSU switched places for the match. On Court 2, Carlton and Allred battled for three sets, but were unable to come away with the win, losing the first, 21-13, winning the second, 21-17, and losing the third, 15-11. On Court 3, Bracken and Deberg lost 24-22 and 21-17.
No. 11 FLORIDA ATLANTIC def. No. 5 LSU: 3-2
Court 1: Mack Morris/Erica Brok (FAU) def. Bella Bauman/Ashlyn Rasnick-Pope (LSU): 17-21, 21-17, 15-8
Court 2: Marketa Svozilova/Courtney Moon (FAU) def. Kylie Deberg/Parker Bracken (LSU): 21-12, 21-17
Court 3: Holly Carlton/Reilly Allred (LSU) def. Ellie Austin/Julie Honzovicova (FAU): 21-16, 21-19
Court 4: Grace Seits/Kelli Greene-Agnew (LSU) def. Jilliene Cangelosi/Christine Jarman (FAU): 21-13, 21-17
Court 5: Abby Jackson/Logan Mignerey (FAU) def. Sierra Caffo/Ellie Shank (LSU): 21-12, 21-19
No. 5 LSU def. No. 15 SOUTH CAROLINA: 4-1
Court 1: Bella Bauman/Ashlyn Rasnick-Pope (LSU) def. Skylar Allen/Whitley Ballard (SC): 21-14, 21-17
Court 2: Lauren Wilcock/Jordan Smith (SC) def. Kylie Deberg/Parker Bracken (LSU): 15-21, 21-18, 21-13
Court 3: Holly Carlton/Reilly Allred (LSU) def. Kaeli Crews/Hannah Mackenhausen (SC): 18-21, 21-14, 15-13
Court 4: Grace Seits/Kelli Greene-Agnew (LSU) def. Peyton Gray/Abby Carroll (SC): 21-17, 21-15
Court 5: Sierra Caffo/Ellie Shank (LSU) def. Sophie Manson/Sophie Bengoechea (SC): 21-17, 21-17
No. 1 UCLA def. No. 5 LSU: 4-1
Court 1: Lexy Denaburg/Abby Van Winkle (UCLA) def. Bella Bauman/Ashlyn Rasnick-Pope (LSU): 21-16
Court 2: Lea Monkhouse/Rileigh Powers (UCLA) def. Holly Carlton/Reilly Allred (LSU): 21-13, 17-21, 15-11
Court 3: Jaden Whitmarsh/Devon Newberry (UCLA) def. Kylie Deberg/Parker Bracken (LSU): 24-22, 21-17
Court 4: Natalie Myszkowski/Sophie Moore (UCLA) def. Sierra Caffo/Kelli Greene-Agnew (LSU): 21-19, 21-15
Court 5: Grace Seits/ Ellie Shank (LSU) def. Jessie Smith/Marlie Monserez (UCLA): 21-19, 21-19