COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – USA Volleyball hosted a Beach Collegiate Challenge on Saturday from Manhattan Beach, Calif., with No. 1 USC finishing unscathed.
Top ranked NCAA team Southern California went 3-0 on April 8 to remain unbeaten on the year. Also at the event were No. 15 Arizona State, and two teams receiving votes in the AVCA Coaches poll, Loyola Marymount and Saint Mary’s.
ASU, LMU and SMC each went 1-2 on the day.
The big story coming out of the tournament was Saint Mary’s sophomore duo Payton Rund/Lindsey Knudsen knocking off USC seniors Kelly Claes/Sara Hughes, 13-21, 21-18, 17-15 in the final dual of the day. Prior to that match, Claes and Hughes were on a 103-match winning streak. USC won the dual, 4-1, against SMC and improve their team winning streak to 55 consecutive duals.
The event proved packed with talent as each of the teams is a Top 15 contender in the polls and with the regular season wrapping at the end of April, post-season appearances on the horizon. The NCAA Beach Volleyball Championship, May 5-7, hosts eight teams in a double elimination tournament. From May 11-13, USA Volleyball is hosting a Collegiate Beach Championships, which invites pairs from those eight teams, and additional schools to compete for a pair title.
The season isn’t over yet, and each week the schedules prove to show tightly contested match-ups. Fans can watch the NCAA Championship on TV and from USAV’s Collegiate Beach Championships, NBCSN will air the women’s final live on May 13 from 6-7:30 p.m. ET, and immediately afterwards the taped delayed men’s final.
Follow the NCAA beach volleyball action with the NCAA’s game center page, giving you up-to-date information about each week’s match-ups.
| Dual Results – Saturday | April 8 | |||||||
| USC def Loyola Marymount 4-1 | Arizona State def Saint Mary’s 3-2 | ||||||
| Claes/Hughes (USC) def Sponcil/Slattery (LMU) | 21-17, 21-13 | Arellano/Follette (ASU) def Rund/Knudsen | 21-16, 21-18 | ||||
| Cannon/Martin (USC) def Prichard/Kovac (LMU) | 21-14, 18-21, 15-12 | Berridge/Okara (ASU) def Bible/Chase | 13-21, 21-18, 15-12 | ||||
| Dennis/Wheeler (USC) def Estes/Whitford (LMU) | 21-15, 15-21, 15-12 | Hernandez/Salmons (SMC) def Rivera/Patchell (ASU) | 21-14, 17-21, 15-10 | ||||
| Belton/Kremer (USC) def Doud/Nederend (LMU) | 22-20, 21-14 | Parker/Calvin (SMC) def Lundberg/Carballo | 20-22, 21-19, 15-8 | ||||
| Castellanos/Williams (LMU) def Kernochan/Thomas (USC) | 23-25, 21-14, 15-12 | Braun/Wedepohl (ASU) def Wilkerson/Young (SMC) | 21-15, 17-21, 15-9 | ||||
| USC def Arizona State 4-1 | Saint Mary’s def Loyola Marymount 3-2 | ||||||
| Claes/Hughes (USC) def Arellano/Follette (ASU) | 21-15, 21-18 | Rund/Knudsen (SMC) def Sponcil/Slattery (LMU) | 22-20, 14-21, 15-9 | ||||
| Berridge/Okara (ASU) def Cannon/Martin (USC) | 21-16, 20-22, 15-10 | Bible/Chase (SMC) def Prichard/Kovac (LMU) | 21-17, 18-21, 15-8 | ||||
| Dennis/Wheeler (USC) def Lundberg/Carballo (ASU) | 21-14, 21-14 | Hernandez/Salmons (SMC) def Estes/Whitford (LMU) | 18-21, 21-19, 15-13 | ||||
| Belton/Kremer (USC) def Cross/Patchell (ASU) | 21-14, 21-17 | Doud/Nederend (LMU) def Parker/Calvin (SMC) | 21-9, 21-17 | ||||
| Dunn/Kernochan (USC) def Braun/Wedepohl (ASU) | 21-16, 22-20 | Castellanos/Williams (LMU) def Wilkerson/Young (SMC) | 21-23, 21-14, 17-15 | ||||
| Loyola Marymount def Arizona State 4-1 | USC def Saint Mary’s 4-1 | ||||||
| Sponcil/Slattery (LMU) def Arellano/Follette (ASU) | 21-17, 21-19 | Rund/Knudsen (SMC) def Claes/Hughes (USC) | 13-21, 21-18, 17-15 | ||||
| Lundberg/Carballo (ASU) def EstesWhitford (LMU) | 14-21, 21-17, 15-12 | Cannon/Martin (USC) def Bible/Chase (SMC) | 21-19, 21-12 | ||||
| Prichard/Kovac (LMU) def Berridge/Okara (ASU) | 21-16, 23-21, 18-16 | Dennis/Wheeler (USC) def Hernandez/Salmons (SMC) | 21-18, 21-16 | ||||
| Doud/Nederend (LMU) def Braun/Wedepohl (ASU) | 21-18, 21-18 | Belton/Kremer (USC) def Parker/Calvin (SMC) | 21-12, 21-8 | ||||
| Castellanos/Williams (LMU) def Cross/Patchell (ASU) | 21-13, 21-9 | Kernochan/Thomas (USC) def Wilkerson/Sullivan (SMC) | 21-16, 21-8 |