South Carolina’s beach volleyball team concluded its opening weekend at the Dolphin Duals in Jacksonville, Florida, with a split result. The Gamecocks secured a 4-1 win over Jacksonville University but fell to No. 14 Stetson by the same score.
Against Jacksonville, South Carolina started strong with victories in the top two pairings. Brooke Balue and Rachel Hartmann won their match on court one with scores of 21-11 and 21-19. Evie Ziffer and Julia Waugh earned their third win of the weekend on court two, finishing 21-16, 17-21, 15-13.
VB Trost and Grace Travis added another point for South Carolina from court five after a three-set contest (21-12, 17-21, 16-14). Jolie Cranford and Peyton Yamagata clinched the overall team victory by coming back to win their match on court four (21-16, 23-25, 15-10).
The team faced tougher competition against Stetson. While Stetson claimed early wins on courts two and three, South Carolina’s Morgan Downs and Amelia Taft secured a hard-fought victory on court five (17-21, 22-20, 15-9). Despite this effort, Stetson ultimately took the match with a final score of 4-1.
South Carolina will return to action February 27–28 as it hosts the Wheeler Beach Bash. The tournament field includes Austin Peay, Chattanooga, Coastal Carolina, and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. The Gamecocks’ first match is scheduled for Friday at 11 a.m.
After opening weekend play at Dolphin Duals:
Brooke Balue/Rachel Hartmann defeated Claire Mrukowski/Megan Hair (Jacksonville) – 21-11, 21-19
Evie Ziffer/Julia Waugh defeated Jamie Seward/Hayden Garnet (Jacksonville) – 21-16, 17-21, 15-13
Jolie Cranford/Peyton Yamagata defeated Avery Kleithermes/Morgan Perry (Jacksonville) – 21-16, 23–25, 15–10
Katie Martinez/Bre McDonough (Jacksonville) defeated Juju Quintero/Annalyse Askew – 21–17, 21–17
VB Trost/Grace Travis defeated Kye Swink/Maddie Fielder (Jacksonville) – 21–12, 17–21 ,16–14
Amelia Taft/Morgan Downs defeated Alize Lemieux/Lizzie Kitchen (Jacksonville) – 21–12 , 21 ,14
Against No.14 Stetson:
Julia Radelczuk/EJ Cudmore (Stetson) defeated Brooke Balue/Rachel Hartmann – 21–17 ,14–21 ,16–14
Marta Carro/Maria Ozaeta (Stetson) defeated Evie Ziffer/Julia Waugh – 23–21 , 21–18
Anniina Muukka/Zoe Flueckiger (Stetson) defeated Jolie Cranford/Peyton Yamagata – 21–19 , 21–18
Julia Czurylo/Rylee Palmateer (Stetson) defeated Juju Quintero/Annalyse Askew – 21–13 , 2l—18
Morgan Downs/Amelia Taft defeated Cayla Sutton/Madeline Camp (Stetson) —17—2l ,22—20 ,15—9
