The primary 8 hours and half-hour of a morning-to-late-afternoon opening-day marathon within the NCAA Seashore Volleyball Championship had plodded together with treasured few highlights, a lot much less excessive drama.
Then, within the final of 9 duals, LSU performed TCU, and followers on the white sand in Gulf Shores, Alabama, and a nationwide TV viewers on ESPNU had one thing to get enthusiastic about.
The pure geographic rivals and former convention antagonists staged a down-to-the-wire thriller that produced the lone upset on Friday. LSU (26-11), seeded eleventh, took down sixth-seeded TCU (29-8) with the dominoes falling quick and livid during the last 10 minutes or so of a 3-2 nail-biter through which 4 of the matches had been prolonged to the three-set restrict.
“At this time was superb,” LSU coach Russell Brock mentioned. “It was clear that we would wish to play effectively and decide to battling for the total match. We received behind early, however the resolve and dedication had been much more clear.
“You could possibly really feel the momentum change midway via and the Tigers had been making a transfer. I’m so pleased with how all our pairs fought.”
A vocal contingent of followers had made the roughly 4-hour journey from the Bayou Nation to the Redneck Riviera, so the Tigers loved nearly a home-sand edge, and their gamers as soon as once more responded by pulling off a stunner.
The opposite largest upset of the 2024 seashore season occurred in Baton Rouge, the place LSU knocked off three-time defending nationwide champion and No. 1-ranked USC throughout its landmark Demise Volley Invitational in late March.
But when LSU had proven the potential of reaching dizzying heights, the vertically-challenged Bayou Bengals additionally had a observe document of inconsistency throughout a marketing campaign with double-digit losses. Commencement and the switch portal left Brock scrambling for blockers, and the taller starters on three of the 5 courts in opposition to TCU had been 5-foot-10 Parker Bracken on the 2s, 5-9 Amber Haynes on the 4s and 5-10 Emily Meyer on the 5s.
After TCU’s newly minted first-team AVCA All-America pair of lefty junior Hailey Hamlett and sophomore Anhelina Khmil took a 21-17, 21-18 victory over LSU’s second-team All-People Gabi Bailey and Ellie Shank on the 1s, the three-set enjoyable received began.
The Sandy Tigs received even when Hayes and feisty 5-foot-4 freshman Skylar Martin took the tiebreaker 15-9 over Morgan Williams and Tara Patton. The CCSA pair of the 12 months, sophomore Bracken and 5-9 senior Reilly Allred, gave LSU a 2-1 benefit, profitable the third set 16-4 over 6-foot Sutton MacTavish and 6-2 Alex Parkhurst.
TCU made it 2-2 a few minutes later, Anete Namike and Olivia Clines closed out Meyer and 5-7 freshman Yali Ashush 15-11. The ESPNU cameras had simply sufficient time to flip over to the 3s court docket for the final 3-4 factors of clinching tiebreaker, received 15-12 by Aubrey O’Gorman and dependable junior Ella Larkin over Emma Glagau and Ana Vergara. The LSU duo had stayed alive within the match by pulling out the second set 23-21. A 6-foot-3 junior who did play a match in 2023, O’Gorman enchancment has been godsend for Brock’s squad.
“There wasn’t one pair that didn’t play the best way we prepare,” Brock mentioned. “We’ve anticipated Reilly and Parker to win large matches all 12 months lengthy they usually proceed to return via. I’m particularly pleased with Aubrey, Ella, Amber and Skylar. Since they began taking part in collectively half method via the season, they simply maintain beating groups that don’t count on to lose.”
A day that kicked off at 9 a.m. Japanese lastly ended with a giddy scene because the Tigers gamers made a mosh pit on the court docket at a couple of minutes earlier than 6:30 p.m., with shadows lengthening by the Gulf of Mexico. LSU is 3-0 in elimination video games in opposition to the Horned Frogs from Fort Value, who had been an NCAA semifinalist in 2023. LSU and TCU had been members of the CCSA earlier than the latter jumped to Convention-USA this season.
The Tigers’ reward is a berth within the quarterfinals on Saturday in opposition to Stanford. The Cardinal bounced LSU 5-0 in the course of the Demise Volley.
The opposite quarterfinal duals will see USC play Loyola Marymount, Florida State face Cal Poly and UCLA meet California. Particulars on the outcomes that put these groups into the second day of competitors in Gulf Shores comply with:
Friday’s recaps
Stanford 3, Georgia State 0: The third-seeded Cardinal (32-5) dominated the 14th-seeded mid-major Sandy Panthers (26-13). Stanford was the one crew on the primary day to win the primary units on all 5 courts. The younger Cardinal received in sweeps on the 2s, 1s and 3s and held comfy leads within the second units of the 2 unfinished matches. First-team All-People Xolani Hodel and freshman sensation Brooke Rockwell put a 21-9, 21-18 beatdown on Georgia State’s in style Ferary twins, Angel and Bella.
Cal 3, Lengthy Seashore State 1: In a extremely aggressive matchup, the seventh-seeded Golden Bears (22-13) had quite a few tense moments earlier than eliminating the Tenth-seeded Seashore (28-10). Cal’s clincher got here in three-set victory (15-10 within the tiebreaker) by the 4s pair of Portia Sherman and Jenna Colligan after sweeps by the 5s and 2s, Though Lengthy Seashore State’s prime pair of sophomore All-People Malia Gementara and Taylor Hagenah received on the No. 1 court docket, the Seashore had been bounced by the Bears within the first spherical for the second 12 months in a row.
UCLA 3, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 0: The Bruins (33-6), the 2023 nationwide runner-up, had extra issue with the plucky Islanders (28-10) than is typical when a No. 2 seed meets a 15. Bruins’ pairs at 3s, 1s and 5s prevailed in sweeps, however two unfinished duals would have gone three units. In a extremely entertaining match of No. 1 pairs, All-People Lexy Denaburg and Maggie Boyd floor out a 21-16, 24-22 overcome Chloe Tome and fab freshman Cassie Dodd.
USC 3, North Florida 0: Step one to a four-peat was achieved by the top-seeded Ladies of Troy (34-5). The Sixteenth-seeded Ospreys (25-12) had been swamped after profitable the play-in twin. AVCA coach of the 12 months Dain Blanton loved a stress-free hour or so on the sand as USC rolled at his 3s, 4s and 2s all took business-as-usual sweeps.
Loyola Marymount 3, Hawaii 1: The West Coast Convention champion Lions (28-13) bounced the Large West champion Rainbow Wahine (24-12) out of the seashore NCAAs within the first spherical for a 3rd consecutive 12 months. Within the 8 vs. 9 twin, Loyola Marymount confirmed the depth in its lineup by profitable on the 3s, 5s and 1s after Hawaii put the primary level on board on the 2s.
Cal Poly 3, Arizona State 0: The Mustangs (30-6) out of the Large West, seeded fifth, superior on the expense of the Twelfth-seeded Solar Devils (21-10), who made their NCAA match debut. Cal Poly appeared sharp as its 2s, 1s and 3s pairs all received in sweeps. Significantly spectacular had been prime duo of first-team AVCA All-People Ella Connor and Izzy Martinez, who topped second-team A-A picks Ava Williamson and Daniella Kensinger 21-18, 21-19.
Florida State 3, Washington 1: The fourth-seeded Seminoles (31-7) needed to work arduous to oust the Thirteenth-seeded Huskies (20-16). FSU received sweeps on the 3s and 4s, with the clinching level notched by prime pair Maddie Anderson and Alexis Durish in a 19-21, 21-15, 15-11 victory over Piper Monk-Heidrich and Maggy Rabitsch. Of their first look within the NCAAs, the Huskies pushed three of the matches to tiebreakers, and the 2s pair of freshman Zoey Henson and junior Lauren Whitlock topped Alli Hansen and Anna Lengthy (15-13 within the third).
North Florida 3, Chattanooga 0 (play-in): The Ospreys loved a second within the morning solar by eliminating the Seventeenth-seeded Mocs (19-10) within the play-in twin that opened the match. North Florida swept on the 1s and 2s, earlier than the 4s pair of Cameron Humphries and Hayden Woodridge clinched this system’s first NCAA-tournament victory, outscoring Kaye Gresham and Paige Gallentine 42-23. Morgan Romano and Julia Lawrence on the 5s had been the one duo for Ohio Valley Convention champion Chattanooga to take a set in this system’s first journey to the nationals.
TV protection
After the primary day of the NCAA match aired on ESPNU, the quarterfinals and semifinals on Saturday will shift to higher-profile ESPN2. The primary of the spherical of 8 duals will begin at 10 a.m. Japanese. The streaming ESPN+ subscription service will piggy-back ESPN2’s feed, in addition to offering the choice of separate streams of every of the 5 courts.
The championship twin on Sunday, beginning at 11 a.m. Japanese, will likely be telecast on the flagship ESPN channel, with every court docket streamed on ESPN+.