Beach VB Takes Runner-Up Finish at Nationals
Huntsville, Ala - The SCF beach volleyball team (16-7) closed out the season with a runner-up finish in the NJCAA National Beach Volleyball Championship at John Hunt Park in Huntsville, Alabama. The Manatees would defeat Lake Sumter State (12-16) 3-2 in the semifinals before falling to Palm Beach State (27-6) 3-0 in the finals. Palm Beach State would win the National Beach Volleyball Championship for the third straight year.
"I'm very proud of this team," said athletic director and interim head coach Nick Cichielo. "They worked really hard to make it this far and I couldn't be any more prouder of them for their hard work and focus."
SCF vs Lake Sumter State:
The Manatees opened with redshirt freshman Bianca Guerrero and freshman Aryanna Spainhower defeating sophomore Rylee Martineau and redshirt freshman Sydney Pickle 21-10, 21-13 at the #5 pair. After the Lakehawks took the #4 pair, sophomore Aleksandra Wrobel and freshman Emma Acedo Lapieza would defeat sophomore Braelyn Mittauer and freshman Sydney Cooper 24-22, 21-15 at the #1 pair.
With two matches left, both the #2 and #3 pairs were forced to a third set. The Lakehawks would take the #2 pair, but sophomore Morgan McGuire and freshman Liepa Kucinskaite would defeat sophomore Cecelia Calton and redshirt freshman Audrey Pickle in three sets (19-21, 21-14, 15-12) to advance the Manatees to the finals.
Palm Beach State defeated Mesa CC (17-11) 3-0 to advance to the finals of the championship.
Consolation Brackets:
Following the main bracket, the teams that lost in the quarterfinals would play in a consolation bracket to determine who would finish between fifth and last place. Eventually, Richard Bland (15-12) would defeat Sandhills CC (9-22) 3-0 to finish in fifth place while Trindad State (4-25) defeated Wake Tech (4-23) 3-0 to take seventh place. Sandhills CC would finish in sixth place and Wake Tech CC would finish in last place.
3rd Place Bracket:
Mesa CC would defeat Lake Sumter State 3-2 to finish in third place in the championship. Lake Sumter would finish in fourth place in the championship for the second straight year.
SCF vs Palm Beach State:
The Panthers would ultimately take straight sets against the #2, #3 and #4 pairs to win the championship.
Notes:
With her one win, Wrobel would finish her SCF career with 38 wins, while Acedo Lapieza bumped up to 20 win and remains seventh all-time.
McGuire's lone win against Lake Sumter State put her at 23 career wins as she finishes sixth all-time in her career.
NJCAA Beach Volleyball Tournament Final Placings:
1. Palm Beach State *
2. SCF ^
3. Mesa CC
4. Lake Sumter
5. Richard Bland
6. Sandhills
7. Trinidad State
8. Wake Tech CC