Beach Volleyball Begins Big 12 Tournament Thursday
TUCSON, Ariz. – The No. 15 South Carolina beach volleyball team will kick off the 2026 Big 12 12 Beach Volleyball Championships in Tucson, Ariz. on Thursday. The Gamecocks will be the fourth seed in the tournament in their first-ever appearance in the conference tournament.
All six programs are divided into two pools (Pool A and Pool B). South Carolina enters as the No. 2 seed in Pool A, joined by Florida State (No. 1/1 overall) and Boise State (No. 3/5 overall). Pool B includes TCU (No. 1/2 overall), Arizona State (No. 2/3 overall) and Arizona (No. 3/6 overall).
To open up the tournament, No. 4 South Carolina will take on overall No. 5 Boise State at 2:30 p.m. and then No. 1 Florida State at 5 p.m. On Friday, the Gamecocks will take on No. 6 Arizona at 12 p.m. for the first round of the single-elimination bracket. The full pool listings and bracket are available here. All times are in ET.
GAMECOCK NOTABLES
- The No. 15 Gamecocks finished the regular season 21-8 (1-2 Big 12).
- South Carolina emerged into the AVCA Collegiate Beach Poll in the second week of the season, sitting at No. 20. The Gamecocks remained ranked among the nation’s best for nine weeks straight, peaking at its current ranking of No.15.
- The Gamecocks secured five ranked wins this season, including then-ranked No. 17 North Florida (3-2), then-ranked No. 11 Arizona State (3-2), then-ranked No. 14 Hawaii (3-2) and then-ranked No. 14 Stetson, twice (3-2 and 4-1).
- Against UNCW, junior Brooke Balue secured her 50th career win, and senior Jolie Cranford captured her 75th vs. North Florida.
- Cranford and fellow senior Peyton Yamagata lead the team with a 20-9 overall record, 5-5 from the No. 1 spot.
- Balue and senior Rachel Harrtmann follow close behind with a 20-8 overall record, notching a 12-7 record from the No.1 spot and an 8-1 record from No.2. The duo has earned the clinching point for the Gamecocks seven times.
- Balue and Hartmann were recently named Big 12 Pair of the Week for the first time in program history. They look to continue a seven-match win streak after going 4-0 at the Deland Cup last weekend.
SCOUTING THE WEEKEND FIELD
ARIZONA (22-8)
All-Time Record: 0-1
Last Meeting: The two teams met for the first time in program history earlier this season at the Wildcat Spring Challenge. Arizona claimed the match-up 3-2.
ARIZONA STATE (17-13)
All-Time Record: 4-3
Last Meeting: The two teams met in March at the Big 12 Preview, where South Carolina secured the top-15 upset 3-2.
BOISE STATE (19-13)
All-Time Record: 2-1
Last Meeting: The Gamecocks and Broncos have met two times so far this season, splitting results. South Carolina picked up the first win at the Carolina Challenge, but Boise State claimed the second match-up at the Big 12 Preview.
FLORIDA STATE (29-2)
All-Time Record: 0-27
Last Meeting: This will be the first match between the two teams this season, but they have met every year since the beginning of the program. They met three times in 2023 and three times in 2024.
TCU (17-9)
All-Time Record: 3-6
Last Meeting: Last time out, the Horned Frogs picked up a 5-0 win against the Gamecocks back in March at the Big 12 Preview.
