University of Washington
Saint Mary's
Huskies Cap Perfect 8-0 Season With Two Wins
April 12, 2015 | Beach Volleyball
PALO ALTO, Calif. – Washington sand volleyball came into year two looking to raise its game, and up its competition level. After finishing an 8-0 campaign, the Huskies will look to raise that level again come 2016 when the first sand NCAA Championships are held. The Dawgs picked up two more wins to cap the dual schedule today, defeating St. Mary's and California at the Stanford Invitational.
Washington demonstrated its improvement through the season once again in the opening match with a sweep of the Gaels. In the season opener on Mar. 21, the Huskies pulled out a tough 3-2 win, but got the sweep today with straight sets wins at No. 3, 4, and 5, and third set victories in the top two matches.
Closing out the sweep was Kaleigh Nelson and Cassie Strickland at the No. 1 spot. They won the first set, 21-19, over Dalas Dodd and Alexis Salmons, before the Gaels answered with a 21-15 second set win. But Nelson and Strickland came through in the third, 15-11, to win their fifth in a row and avenge a season-opening loss to St. Mary's.
The No. 2 match saw freshmen Crissy Jones and Tia Scambray cruise to a first set win, 21-12, over Hernandez and Powers, but the Gaels came back to win the second, 21-13, giving Jones and Scambray their first set loss of the season. Jones and Scambray were undeterred, however, taking the last set, 15-11, to run their record to 7-0.
Earlier in the day, Melanie Wade and Justice Magraw got the Dawgs on the board quickly with a 21-11, 21-11 win over Singh/Trenka at No. 5. Bailey Tanner and Courtney Schwan were two points better in each of their sets against Maegan Conroy and Hannah Liserra, making it 2-0 Huskies with a 21-19, 21-19 win and also improving to 7-0.
The clincher came from Krista Vansant and Carly DeHoog at the No. 3 spot, as they held off Mileva Popovic and Madi Wilkerson, 21-18, 21-18. Jade Finau and Lianna Sybeldon also had an exhibition win, giving up just five total points, including a 21-0 first set win.
After quick break, the Huskies were back on the sand to face their second Pac-12 opponent of the season, the Cal Bears. The Huskies took a 2-0 lead with wins at four and five, but Cal stayed alive with a win at the No. 3 spot, before Jones and Scambray clinched the victory with a straight set win at No. 2 in what would settle up as a 3-2 victory.
Tanner and Schwan wrapped up an 8-0 dual match record with a dominant 21-10, 21-12 win over Mackenzie Feldman and Sammy Furlan at the No. 4 spot. Wade and Magraw then improved their record at No. 5 to 6-1 on the year with a crucial come-from-behind three set win over Allison Leong and Teya Neff. Wade and Magraw dropped the first set, 18-21, before taking over, winning the next two sets 21-12 and 15-9.
Cal's pair of Inanna Eshoo and Katie Regalia survived in three sets against Vansant and DeHoog at No. 3, winning 21-16, 13-21, 15-11. But Jones and Scambray clinched things with a decisive 21-13, 21-15 win over the No. 2 Bears tandem of Bryce Bark and Emily Shults. Cal got the victory at No. 1, as Nelson and Strickland dropped a pair of 21-16 sets to Sarah Cole and Emily Lunt.
The Huskies will compete in a pairs tournament tomorrow at Stanford to wrap up the season.
Washington Sand Volleyball
Stanford Invitational
Arillaga Center for Sports and Recreation (Match 1)
Stadium Courts (Match 2)
Palo Alto, Calif. – April 11, 2015
Match 1
Washington 5, St. Mary's 0
1. Nelson/Strickland (UW) def. Dodd/Salmons (SMC), 21-19, 15-21, 15-11
2. Jones/Scambray (UW) def. Hernandez/Powers (SMC), 21-12, 13-21, 15-11
3. Vansant/DeHoog (UW) def. Popovic/Wilkerson (SMC), 21-18, 21-18
4. Tanner/Schwan (UW) def. Conroy/Liserra (SMC), 21-19, 21-19
5. Wade/Magraw (UW) def. Singh/Trenka (SMC), 21-11, 21-11
Exh. Sybeldon/Finau (UW) def. Patchell/Trenka (SMC), 21-0, 21-5
Order of Finish: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1
Match 2
Washington 3, California 2
1. Cole/Lunt (Cal) def. Nelson/Strickland (UW), 21-16, 21-16
2. Jones/Scambray (UW) def. Bark/Shults (Cal), 21-13, 21-15
3. Eshoo/Regalia (Cal) def. Vansant/DeHoog (UW), 21-16, 13-21, 15-11
4. Tanner/Schwan (UW) def. Feldman/Furlan (Cal), 21-10, 21-12
5. Wade/Magraw (UW) def. Leong/Neff (Cal), 18-21, 21-12, 15-9
Exh. Sybeldon/Finau (UW) def. Blackwell/Johnson (Cal), 17-21, 21-17, 15-6
Order of Finish: 4, 5, 3, 2, 1
