Tulane University
Florida State University
Beach Volleyball Drops Competitive Matches to No. 3 FSU and No. 15 FAU on Friday
Mar 29, 2019 | Women's Beach Volleyball
MIAMI – The Tulane beach volleyball team (14-10, 5-8 CCSA) played hard on Friday in the first day of the FIU Surf 'N Turf before ultimately falling to No. 3 Florida State and No. 15 Florida Atlantic in competitive matches.
"The players played their hearts out in both matches today and I am very proud of how they competed," head coach Wayne Holly said. "On three different courts, we played in tie-breaking sets against last year's national runner-up and No. 3 ranked Florida State. The FAU match was extraordinarily tight as well. Unfortunately, they made one more play than us, winning 16-14 in the third set of flight three. We played very well today and we need to come out tomorrow with even more resolve to play even better."
Juniors Kaylie McHugh and Eva Torruella dominated from the No. 1 position against Florida Atlantic in the second match of the day, securing the two-set sweep over Carly Scarbrough and Nicole Navarro with identical 21-13 scores.
Freshmen Haley Gibson and Ellie Leitko were also successful in match two from the No. 4 spot, defeating FAU's Kaila Dorish and Savannah Pesante in straight sets, 21-15 and 21-19.
In the deciding match, junior Tarin Mergener and sophomore Addison Hermstad were just shy of defeating the Owls, dropping the first set, 19-21, before taking the second, 21-13. The two battled back before dropping the final set with an extremely close 14-16 score.
Three Green Wave pairs put up a tough fight against Florida State in Tulane's first match of the day, with courts two, four and five battling against the Seminoles until the very end.
Junior Tarin Mergener and sophomore Addison Hermstad came together on the sand at the No. 2 spot, falling in the first set, 15-21, before coming back to win the second, 21-19. The pair was just short of earning the come-from-behind victory, before ultimately falling to FSU's Sara Putt and Payton Rund in the final set, 11-15.
Leitko and Gibson started off strong from the No. 4 position, grabbing a tight 21-18 win in the first set of action. The duo was unable to stay on top to close out the match, dropping the next two to Seminoles' Brooke Kuhlman and Morgan Chacon with 16-21 and 6-15 scores.
Sophomores Morgan Esters and Gabriella Becerra fell short in set one, 13-21, before turning the match around in set two with a 21-15 win to force a tiebreaking set three. The two were almost able to pull off the win, but ended up falling short to FSU's Macy Jerger and Nikki Esposito in the third set, 8-15.
The Green Wave are back in action on Sunday with a full three-match schedule, facing No. 8 Florida International, No. 20 TCU and No. 10 Stetson at 7:15 a.m., 12:15 p.m. and 3:15 p.m., respectively.
No. 3 Florida State 5, Tulane 0
No. 1 Alaina Chacon/Madison Fitzpatrick (FSU) def. Kaylie McHugh/Eva Torrruella (TU), 21-15, 21-15
No. 2 Sara Putt/Payton Rund (FSU) def. Tarin Mergener/Addison Hermstad (TU), 21-15, 19-21, 15-11
No. 3 Molly McBain/Payton Caffrey (FSU) def. Lauren Orlich/Rio Frohoff (TU), 21-11, 21-16
No. 4 Brooke Kuhlman/Morgan Chacon (FSU) def. Ellie Leitko/Haley Gibson (TU), 18-21, 21-16, 15-6
No. 5 Macy Jerger/Nikki Esposito (FSU) def. Morgan Esters/Gabriella Becerra (TU), 21-13, 15-21, 15-8
Order of finish: 3, 1, 4, 5, 2
Florida Atlantic 3, Tulane 2
No. 1 Kaylie McHugh/Eva Torrruella (TUL) def. Carly Scarbrough/Nicole Navarro, 21-13, 21-13
No. 2 Mackenzie Morris/Erica Brok (FAU) def. Lauren Orlich/Rio Frohhoff (TUL), 21-19, 21-16
No. 3 Amanda Silva/Nicole Grant (FAU) def. Tarin Mergener/Addie Hermstad (TUL), 21-19, 13-21, 16-14
No. 4 Haley Gibson/Ellie Leitko (TUL) def. Kaila Dorish/Savannah Pesante (FAU), 21-15, 21-19
No. 5 Jillienne Cangelosi/Megan McGrath (FAU) def. Morgan Esters/Gabby Becerra (TUL), 21-13, 21-13
Order of finish: 1, 4, 2, 5, 3
Follow Tulane beach volleyball on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram. Follow Tulane Athletics on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
WE ARE NOLA BUILT
Tulane University is located in the city of New Orleans. It is a city built on tradition and resiliency. The lessons Green Wave student-athletes have learned through their connection with this university and city have BUILT doctors, lawyers, business leaders, conference champions, all-conference players, all-Americans, professional athletes and NCAA tournament teams. The city of New Orleans has shaped us into who we are today. We are One City. We are Tulane. We are NOLA BUILT. Check out our story at NolaBuilt.com.
