Tallahassee, Fl. – The No. 8 LSU Beach Volleyball team went 1-1 on day one of the Mid-Season CCSA Tournament, taking down Jacksonville University.
“Hopefully today was a wakeup call,” said head coach Russell Brock. “When you continue to lose to programs, we are better than, the only productive response is to make changes and choose to be better. We don’t lack any ability or skill. We just haven’t played with the execution, energy and confidence that we’ve earned through our training and the experience we’ve gained. I’d love to give credit to our opponents for just playing great, but we have to accept a great deal of the responsibility and hold ourselves accountable to the standard that we’ve chosen as a group. Tomorrow will be a big test, and I’m looking forward to seeing how we respond.”
On Sunday, the Sandy Tigs will start the day with a matchup against South Carolina at 8 a.m. CT before wrapping up the weekend against No. 5 FSU at 11:45 a.m. CT.
LSU began the day with a battle against No. 18 GCU, but came up short, losing 3-2. Ella Larkin and Ellie Shank took Court 3 in straight sets; 21-17 and 21-11. Reilly Allred and Parker Bracken followed with a win on Court 2; 21-17 and 21-13.
Brooke Blutreich and Skylar Martin lost Court 5; 15-21 and 20-22. Emily Meyer and Yali Ashush lost Court 4; 17-21 and 17-21. Gabi Bailey and Amber Haynes went to battle on Court 1, but fell; 21-14, 20-22 and 11-15.
After a break, LSU swept Jacksonville, 5-0. Larkin and Bracken started things off for the Tigers with a big win on Court 3; 21-4 and 21-9. Bailey and Allred followed shortly after winning Court 1; 21-17 and 21-11.
Meyer and Ashush won Court 5; 21-17 and 21-11. Shank and Haynes won Court 2; 21-17 and 21-17. Amelia Taft and Martin finished off the match in three sets on Court 4 winning; 14-21, 22-20 and 15-11.
LSU 2, GCU 3
- Krista Rowan/Sophia Hladyniuk (GCU) def. Gabi Bailey/Amber Haynes (LSU) 14-21, 22-20, 15-11
- Reilly Allred/Parker Bracken (LSU) def. Katie Keefe/Noelle Weintraub (GCU) 21-17, 21-13
- Ella Larkin/Ellie Shank (LSU) def. Sarah Dickson/Karynn Garrow (GCU) 21-17, 21-11
- Madi Bogle/Becca Drake (GCU) def. Emily Meyer/Yali Ashush (LSU) 21-17, 21-17
- Mackenzie Harris/Jessica Drake (GCU) def. Brooke Blutreich/Skylar Martin (LSU) 21-15, 22-20
LSU 5, JU 0
- Gabi Bailey/Reilly Allred (LSU) def. Emily Kubicsko/Jenna McNamara (JU) 21-14, 21-15
- Amber Haynes/Ellie Shank (LSU) def. Anna Erickson/Olivia Szyskiewicz (JU) 21-17, 21-17
- Ella Larkin/Parker Bracken (LSU) def. Katie Martinez/Meredith Mrukowski (JU) 21-4, 21-9
- Amelia Taft/Skyler Martin (LSU) def. Kristina Nika/Claire Mrukowski (JU) 14-21, 22-20, 15-11
- Emily Meyer/Yali Ashush (LSU) def. Hayden Garnett/Rachel Hess (JU) 21-17, 21-11