No. 4 LSU beach volleyball finishes Horned Frog Challenge 2-2

By Chloe Richmond

March 11, 2023

Matthew Perschall

LSU beach volleyball junior Amber Haynes (12) tries to block the ball on Sunday, March 5, 2023, during LSU’s 5-0 win against North Alabama at the Beach Volleyball Stadium on Cypress Drive in Baton Rouge, La.

The second day of the Horned Frog Challenge had a slightly different outcome for the No. 4 LSU beach volleyball team.

The Tigers won their first match 5-0 against Texas A&M-Kingsville and followed it with a 1-4 loss to No. 1 Texas Christian University.

The Sandy Tigs were in the sand early against Texas A&M-Kingsville, and a few different faces were in the lineup for the first time this weekend.

Ella Larkin and Lara Boos were on Court 4 and secured the Tigers’ first point of the dual. In a straight-set win, the Tiger duo took the match with ease as the scoreboard read 21-10 in the first and 21-14 in the second.

Court 5 featured Melia Lindner and Amber Haynes, and the pair quickly took care of the Javelinas. Set one finished off at 21-9 and set two ended similarly at 21-13.

As the Tigers went up 2-0 against the Javelinas, Courts 1, 2 and 3 prepared for gameplay.

Kylie DeBerg and Ellie Shank were back at it on Court 1 for the Tigers and handled their match in dominant fashion, not letting the Javelinas score more than 10 points over the whole game. A straight-set win with set one finishing at 21-6 and set two finishing at 21-4 added a third game point for the Tigers, giving the overall dual win to LSU.

Another straight-set win on Court 2 came from Elizabeth Masters and Parker Bracken. Masters and Bracken capped their sets off at 21-17 and 21-10 without losing the lead once.

Grace Seits was put on Court 3 with Reilly Allred, and the first set for the pair was full of back-and-forth ties and lead changes. The set went into extra points and finished off in favor of the Tigers at 22-20, then the pair went on to take set two 21-17.

After the Tigers’ 5-0 sweep over Texas A&M-Kingsville, LSU had some time to rest and prepare for a rematch against No. 1 TCU, who swept LSU 5-0 during the first day of the Horned Frog Challenge.

TCU claimed its first game point on Court 4 against Larkin and Boos. The first two sets finished identically with each side taking one at 21-16. During a tie-breaking third, the Tiger pair let a 12-10 lead slip out of their hands and the Horned Frogs went on a 5-1 run to close it out 15-13.

Court 5 with Lindner and Haynes also took three sets to decide the winner. After a close 19-21 loss in the first set, the Tigers took the second set 21-14. Despite a strong finish in the second, LSU dropped the third set 9-15, giving TCU a 2-0 lead in the dual.

With the Horned Frogs up 2-0 over the Sandy Tigs, LSU was still looking for a match win over TCU. Similar to the first time the two teams battled, the Tigers had to win every match on Courts 1, 2 and 3 to win the dual.

Hannah Brister joined Allred on Court 3. Despite pushing the Horned Frogs to three sets the first time they went up against TCU, Brister and Allred fell in straight sets at 16-21 and 11-21. The loss put TCU at 3-0, taking away any chance for the Tigers to win the dual.

Another Tiger loss followed after the conclusion of gameplay on Court 3. DeBerg and Shank were handled in straight sets on Court 1 with both scores finishing off at 15-21.

The last game of the Horned Frog Challenge was finished on Court 2. After a hard fight, LSU was able to leave the dual with one win over TCU thanks to Seits and Bracken. The Tiger 2’s took a close first-set win at 21-19 and followed it up with a 21-17 win in the second.

LSU ended the weekend going 11-9 across four matchups and 2-2 overall, losing twice to TCU.

There’s still work to be done for the Sandy Tigs, and they’ll be tested again soon. The Tigers have five days to train before they head to Gulf Shores, Alabama for the March to May tournament on March 17-18.

In the tournament, LSU will face Georgia State University, Florida State University, UCLA and Mercer University. With three of the four teams currently ranked in the top 10, the Tigers have a lot to work on if they want to stay within the top five.

About the Contributor

Chloe Richmond, Digital Editor

Why did you join the Reveille?

I wanted to push myself outside of my comfort zone. Considering I never shared my writing throughout high school, I’d say the Reveille has aided me well.

What positions have you held at the Reveille?

I was a sports reporter for three semesters. I covered beach volleyball and volleyball.

What's your favorite thing about working at the Reveille?

Aside from the rewarding feeling of seeing my byline on the Internet and in print, my favorite thing about working at the Reveille hands down is the community. I love my cool writer friends.

What's your favorite story that you've written so far?

Everyone will tell you that I’m the biggest Nebraska volleyball fan, so naturally, my favorite story is my comparison between LSU and Nebraska volleyball. A couple of honorable mentions go out to my 2023 SEC volleyball breakdown and the profile I did on former LSU volleyball player Josie Vondran.

What do you hope to do after graduation?

I want to work in the Big Ten conference on the women's volleyball beat (if you couldn't guess). My ideal situation would involve me generating feature/profile stories that highlight athletes as people beyond their sport.

Where can you be found on social media?

My Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) are both @chlorichmond. You can find me on Linkedin as well.