After earning its first program wins Saturday at the Gamecock Invitational, the LSU sand volleyball team will look to further its progression in its first-ever contest against in-state opponent Tulane at 2 p.m. today at Coconut Beach in Kenner, La.
The Tigers (2-3) have yet to defeat a program not in its inaugural season, but their three losses have been close, which has LSU coach Russell Brock optimistic about their growth early in the season.
“That next step is probably closer than I thought it would be at this point,” Brock said. “I would like to think that if we turned right around and played those teams again right after we played them, we’d have a different result.”
Brock said defeating a more established program is the next thing on the Tigers’ list of obstacles to overcome.
A contest with Tulane (2-3), a 3-year-old program, today provides a perfect opportunity to finally achieve this goal.
“That’s our next hurdle, and we get a chance to see if we can get over it [today],” Brock said. “We’re coming off a week where we played more sand volleyball than probably any of these girls have played in their life. It will be a good opportunity to see if we’re ready to move into that next phase.”
Brock said LSU’s pairings are starting to solidify, especially the top three duos of Meghan Mannari and Katie Lindelow, Kaitlin Hatcher and Helen Boyle and Victoria Boraski and Cati Leak.
The Tigers will continue to shuffle the fourth and fifth pairs, according to Brock, who said the coaching staff would decide who will take the sand in today’s contest against the Green Wave after Tuesday’s practice.
“There will be some lineup changes along the way,” Brock said. “We’re definitely not etching our lineup in stone at this point.”
The contest will mark LSU’s first in-state away contest, and Brock said he hopes fans come out to support what he hopes will be a new rivalry.
“I hope they get a lot of people out because it’s a lot more fun when there’s a big crowd cheering you and even against you,” Brock said.
“That next step is probably closer than I thought it would be at this point.”