The LSU beach volleyball team made it to the semifinals in the CCSA conference championship tournament, but fell short against Georgia State in the final match of the weekend.
LSU entered the tournament this weekend as the No. 4 seed and competed against No. 1 seed Florida State and No. 8 seed UAB on Friday.
The Seminoles dominated the Tigers’ first match, 3-2, but not without a fight from LSU.
LSU gained a 2-0 lead when the No. 5 pair of freshman Megan Davenport and sophomore Cheyenne Wood and the duo of sophomores Mandi Orellana and Riley Young each won their matches in straight sets.
Florida State rallied back, defeating the tandem of senior Helen Boyle and sophomore Lilly Kessler in straight sets of their own, 17-21 and 13-21. The No. 1 pair, senior Katie Lindelow and freshman Ashley Allmer, also lost in two sets.
The Seminoles gained their final match point when they beat seniors Callan Molle and Cati Leak. The Tigers forced a third set, but Florida State eventually pulled out a 3-2 victory.
“We had a great opportunity to show what we’re capable of,” said LSU coach Russell Brock in a news release Friday. “To be that close — when you lose to a team that’s only lost one match this year — that says a lot about how much we’ve improved since we played them a month ago.”
The Tigers brought their competitive edge into their next match against the Blazers, capturing a 5-0 win.
Wood and Davenport gained LSU’s first point. Young and Orellana followed with the Tigers’ second match point.
Just as the Tigers had in their earlier match against Florida State, UAB was
determined to fight back.
UAB forced Boyle and Kessler to a third set, but fell to the Tigers, giving them a 3-0 lead.
The duos of Leak and Molle, and Lindelow and Allmer recorded LSU’s final points.
“Our conversation going into that match [against UAB] was that we know what we can do,” Brock said in Friday’s news release, “and our job is to play with the same intensity, execution and passion with which we just played.”
On the second day of the championship, LSU defeated both South Carolina and Florida Atlantic, 5-0 and 3-2, respectively.
Against the Gamecocks, the Tigers’ first three points were won in full sets. The tandems of Molle and Leak, and Boyle and Kessler notched LSU’s next two points, each requiring a third set. Pair Lindelow and Allmer finished the match in straight sets, 21-12 and 22-20, to gain a 5-0 win.
The Tigers moved into the quarterfinals after their win against South Carolina and faced the Owls.
Florida Atlantic proved to be a worthy opponent, as it took a 2-1 lead when Leak and Molle fell in three sets. Boyle and Kessler helped tie the match, while Lindelow and Allmer gained LSU’s final point for a 3-2 victory.
“FAU is a team that has given a lot of people trouble,” Brock said in a news release Saturday. “They play the game well and have great coaching … To come out on top is something that we’re proud of, and we’re honored and excited to put ourselves in a position to advance to the finals.”
LSU played the Panthers in the semifinals, but the Tigers came up short, 3-2.
The semifinals started off with a tie, 1-1, but Orellana and Young dropped their match in straight sets. The overall match went downhill from there. Lindelow and Allmer also fell in straight sets, 18-21 and 19-21.
Davenport and Wood gained LSU’s second point of the match after a medical forfeit.