March 14, 2015
ST. AUGUSTINE BEACH, Fla. — The South Carolina sand volleyball team went 1-1 on the first day of competition on Saturday at the UNF Sand Invitational at the St. Augustine Beach Pier.
The Gamecocks opened the day with a 3-2 loss to host North Florida but bounced back to claim a 4-1 victory over College of Charleston to close out the day. With the split, the Gamecocks are now 5-2 on the season.
“I’m happy with how we ended the day,” South Carolina head coach Moritz Moritz said. “The girls definitely raised their level of play from the way that we started the day. I’m proud of our four and five pairs for really setting the stage in both duals today, and we had opportunities to win. It’s just a matter of us continuing to find ways to compete and push ourselves over the hump. The way that we finished will help build momentum heading into the duals tomorrow.”
In the Gamecocks’ first dual of the day, the No. 4 pair of Macie Tendrich and Jade Hayes and No. 5 pair of KoKo Atoa-Williams and Allie Monserez got Carolina off to a strong start. Hayes and Tendrich took the first set from North Florida’s Emily Davanzo and Ebony Gunn, 21-17, and then made quick work of the Osprey duo with a 21-11 win in set two. Atoa-Williams and Monserez then defeated North Florida’s Kimberly Ferguson and Ambre Desaulnay by the scores of 21-17 and 21-17 to give the Gamecocks a 2-0 lead.
North Florida picked up its first point of the dual in the No. 3 match, as Tanner Garbutt and Julie Trembley defeated Carolina’s Jade Vitt and Sarah Blomgren by the scores of 21-14 and 21-19.
In the No. 2 pairs match, Carolina’s Paige Wheeler and Megan Kent shook off a 21-15 loss in the first set to Tessa Alyman and Jess Kinlaw and evened the match with a 21-15 win in the second set. However, they came up short in the third set, as Alyman and Kinlaw won 15-11 to tie the dual at 2-2.
The Gamecocks’ No. 1 pair of Maddie Frome and Julia Mannisto dropped a 21-16 decision in the first set to North Florida’s Cameron McGuire and Cari Whitmire but responded to take the second set by the score of 21-17. The pairs battled back and forth in the third set, and with the score tied at 13-13, McGuire and Whitmire scored the next to points to clinch the win for the Ospreys.
In the College of Charleston dual, Carolina’s No. 4 and 5 pairs came up big again. Atoa-Williams and Monserez didn’t let a 21-12 loss to Krissy Mummey and Megan Quigley in the first set phase them as they answered to win the next two sets by the scores of 21-18 and 15-10 to give the Gamecocks a 1-0 lead.
In the No. 4 pairs match against the Cougars’ Mackenzie Cooler and Britney Vallez, Hayes and Tendrich overcame a 21-19 loss in the first set to win the next two sets by the scores of 21-15 and 18-16 to push Carolina’s lead to 2-0.
Vitt and Blomgren cruised past College of Charleston’s Bailey Humes and Grace Rebarchak in the No. 3 pairs match by the scores of 21-10 and 21-10 to clinch the win for the Gamecocks.
Wheeler and Kent gave the Gamecocks their fourth point as they topped the Cougars’ Liz Theesfeld and Maddie Hills 21-17 in the first set and edged them 23-21 in the second set for the win.
College of Charleston picked up its only point of the afternoon in the No. 1 pairs match, as Melissa Morello and Catey Warren defeated Frome and Mannisto by the scores of 21-11 and 21-16.
The Gamecocks will close out play at the UNF Sand Invitational on Sunday. Carolina will face Florida Atlantic at 1:30 p.m. and Jacksonville at 3:30.
Results
North Florida 3, South Carolina 2
No. 1: Cameron McGuire/Cari Whitmire (UNF) def. Maddie Frome/Julia Mannisto (SC) 21-16, 17-21, 15-13
No. 2: Tessa Alyman/Jess Kinlaw (UNF) def. Megan Kent/Paige Wheeler (SC) 21-15, 15-21, 15-11
No. 3: Tanner Garbutt/Julie Trembley (UNF) def. Sarah Blomgren/Jade Vitt (SC) 21-14, 21-19
No. 4: Jade Hayes/Macie Tendrich (SC) def. Emily Davanzo/Ebony Gunn (UNF) 21-17, 21-11
No. 5: KoKo Atoa-Williams/Allie Monserez (SC) def. Kimberly Ferguson/Ambre Desaulnay (UNF) 21-17, 21-17
South Carolina 4, College of Charleston 1
No. 1: Melissa Morello/Catey Warren (CofC) def. Maddie Frome/Julia Mannisto (SC) 21-11, 21-16
No. 2: Paige Wheeler/Megan Kent (SC) def. Liz Theesfeld/Maddie Hills (CofC) 21-17, 23-21
No. 3: Jade Vitt/Sarah Blomgren (SC) def. Bailey Humes/Grace Rebarchak (CofC) 21-10, 21-10
No. 4: Jade Hayes/Macie Tendrich (SC) def. Mackenzie Cooler/Britney Vallez (CofC) 19-21, 21-15, 18-16
No. 5: KoKo Atoa-Williams/Allie Monserez (SC) def. Krissy Mummey/Megan Quigley (CofC) 12-21, 21-18, 15-10
