Championship Central
SANTA MONICA, Calif. – Santa Clara beach volleyball saw its season come to a close Friday after the Broncos went 1-2 in the inaugural West Coast Conference Championship.
The Broncos (11-5) came into the seven-team, double-elimination tournament as the third seed, but dropped matches to the sixth-seeded Lions (7-14) and the fourth-seeded Gaels (15-5). Santa Clara was able to muster one win on the opening day of action, downing the seventh-seeded Pilots (0-9) to remain alive after losing the opener to LMU.
Match 1: Loyola Marymount 4 Santa Clara 1
The Broncos dropped their first match of the day to the upset-minded Lions. Loyola Marymount, seeded sixth, played great volleyball on the day, taking down Santa Clara before also upsetting second-seeded USF, earning themselves a spot in Saturday's semifinals.
In a match that saw three duals go to the deciding third set, Loyola Marymount's Lindsay Carr and Veronica Nederend clinched the match with a three-set win over Santa Clara's Sarah Vaccaro and Lacey Maas at the No. 4 pairing. Carr/Nederend took a close 15-12 third set to finish it off.
The Broncos' lone victory in the match came at the No. 2 slot where Danielle Rottman and Nikki Hess defeated the Lions' Sascha Dominique and Kekaj Whitford 22-20, 21-19.
Results:
No. 1 - Rachelle Suaava (LMU) def. Kirsten Mead/Sabrina Clayton (SCU); 21-18, 21-11
No. 2 - Danielle Rottman/Nikki Hess (SCU) def. Sascha Dominique/Kekai Whitford (LMU); 22-20, 21-19
No. 3 - Jamie Lea/Tatiana Schange (LMU) def. Hailey Lindberg/Jensen Cunningham (SCU); 21-20, 17-21, 15-12
No. 4 - Lindsay Carr/Veronica Nederend (LMU) def. Sarah Vaccaro/Lacey Maas (SCU); 21-16, 19-21, 15-12
No. 5 - Sara Kovac/Kristen Castellanos (LMU) def. Madison Dutra/Mary Shepherd (SCU) def.; 21-14, 16-21, 17-15
Match 2: Santa Clara 4 Portland 1
The Broncos kept themselves alive in the tournament by defeating the Pilots in each team's second match of the day.
After dropping the first dual, Santa Clara went on to win the next four, beating Portland for the second time this season. The Broncos swept the Pilots 5-0 on March 10.
The Broncos' Madison Dutra and Mary Shepherd sealed the victory by cruising to a two-set victory (21-13, 21-14) over the Pilots' Katie Sullivan and Brittney Markwith at the No. 5 pairing.
Rottman/Hess took their second consecutive victory on the day by defeating Portland's Makayla Lindburg and Maddy Mandon in the No. 2 grouping.
Bronco victories also came from their No. 1 and No. 4 teams. At No. 1, Kirsten Mead and Sabrina Clayton made quick work of the Pilots' Hannah Troutman and Margan Robinson 21-11, 21-15. At No. 4, Vaccaro/Maas battled for a three-set victory over Portland's Djurdjina Milovic and Lauren Naatz, taking the third set 15-8.
Results:
No. 1 - Kirsten Mead/Sabrina Clayton (SCU) def. Hannah Troutman/Margan Robinson; (POR) 21-11, 21-15
No. 2 - Danielle Rottman/Nikki Hess (SCU) def. Makayla Lindburg/Maddy Mandon (POR); 21-17, 21-9
No. 3 – Sarah Savoca/Monica Gajda (LMU) def. Hailey Lindberg/Jensen Cunningham (SCU); 21-8, 21-7
No. 4 - Sarah Vaccaro/Lacey Maas (SCU) def. Djurdjina Milovic/Lauren Naatz (POR); 21-16, 19-21, 15-8
No. 5 - Madison Dutra/Mary Shepherd (SCU) def. Katie Sullivan/Brittney Markwith (POR); 21-13, 21-14
Match 3: Saint Mary's 4 Santa Clara 1
The Broncos season came to an end with their second loss of the day, a defeat at the hands of the Gaels. In a closely contested match, the Broncos lost two duals in which they won the first set. It was Santa Clara's second loss of the season to Saint Mary's, also falling 4-1 on April 16.
Saint Mary's earned itself a spot in the semifinals with Hannah Liserra and Alex O'Sullivan's defeat of Dutra/Shepherd at the No. 5 spot. Dutra/Shepherd took the first set 21-19, but could not finish off the second or third sets, falling 21-19 and 15-7, respectively.
Rottman/Hess was the other Bronco duo to drop the second and third sets after a first-set victory. Rottman/Hess fell 19-21, 21-12, 16-14 to the Gaels' Mary Hernandez and Payton Rudd at the No. 2 grouping.
Vaccaro/Maas claimed the Bronco's only dual victory of the match by beating the Gaels' Lindsey Calvin and Emily Bible 19-21, 21-15, 15-11 at the No. 4 pairing.
The Broncos end a strong season with program-record 11 wins, including a six-match winning streak from March 12-April 8.
Results:
No. 1 – Dalas Dodd/Lindsey Knudsen (SMC) def. Kirsten Mead/Sabrina Clayton (SCU); 21-17, 21-15
No. 2 – Mary Hernandez/Payton Rudd (SMC) def. Danielle Rottman/Nikki Hess (SCU); 19-21, 21-12, 16-14
No. 3 – Alexis Salmons/Mandi Wilkerson (SMC) def. Jensen Cunningham/Tatiana San Juan (SCU); 21-16, 21-18
No. 4 – Sarah Vaccaro/Lacey Maas (SCU) def. Lindsey Calvin/Emily Bible (SMC); 19-21, 21-15, 15-11
No. 5 – Hannah Liserra/Alex O'Sullivan (SMC) def. Madison Dutra/Mary Shepherd (SCU); 19-21, 21-19, 15-7
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