Friday, March 5
Fort Worth, Texas
10:10 a.m.
Southern Miss
3
vs
2
Central Arkansas
Southern Miss Splits First Day of Horned Frog Classic
3/5/2021 6:53:00 PM | Beach Volleyball
FORT WORTH, Texas --Â The Southern Miss beach volleyball team jumped into the win column for the first time of the year Friday morning, ultimately splitting with Central Arkansas (3-2) and UAB (falling 4-1).
"Obviously, we would have liked to come away with a pair of wins, but overall I'm pleased with our play today," head coach Shawn Taylor said. "We've been working on some very specific things that will help us down the road. We're starting to see glimpses of it and just need to play our game and style for longer stretches. For many of our players, the UCA win was their first when as individuals/pairs and it was our first team win."
The Golden Eagles' first four opponents, all at the Seminole Beach Bash, were ranked in the top-18. Southern Miss also had the benefit of getting freshmen Haley Rogers and Faith Miller their first action on the extra court, making for five rookies out of 12 overall participants.
Kylie Grandy and Abbey Wilson picked up a clutch win on No. 1 against UCA, while Rogers/Miller and Valeria Siakidou Papakyriakou/Kai Norman had the distinction of being the only 2-0 pairs of the day.
"Kai and Vale kept that momentum rolling into our match against UAB," Taylor said. "They were super aggressive from the service line and in good side out rhythm. We had some pairs do some great things. We just came up a little short in the other matches. The wind and atmosphere have been a great challenge, and we're looking forward to a couple more opportunities to compete tomorrow."
Southern Miss will next battle No. 14 FIU (9:40 a.m.) and No. 9 TCU (4:10 p.m.) Saturday to close out the weekend.
Southern Miss 3, Central Arkansas 2
1. Kylie Grandy/Abbey Wilson (USM) def. Aly Brinkley/Colene Hamilton (UCA) 22-20, 21-17Â
2. Evelyn Griffith/Faith Hasness (UCA) def. Breleigh Favre/Olivia Hepworth (USM) 21-18, 18-21, 15-13Â
3. Makenna Schmitt/Shannon Stone (UCA) def. Hallie Phelan/Haley Hop (USM) 21-12, 21-17Â
4. Valeria Siakidou Papakyriakou/Kai Norman (USM) def. Julia Oravec/Bria Garmon (UCA) 21-14, 21-9Â
5. Kaylie Beck/Melanie Miller (USM) def. Kelsie Sager/Kayla Cook (UCA) 21-16, 21-18Â
Ext. Haley Rogers/Faith Miller (USM) def. Annie Berry/Payton Sproule (UCA) 21-13, 16-21, 15-13
UAB 4, Southern Miss 1Â
1. Rachel Tam/Mikayla Law-Heese (UAB) def. Abbey Wilson/Kylie Grandy (USM) 21-16, 15-21, 15-8Â
2. Dylynn Otte/Emma Andraka (UAB) def. Olivia Hepworth/Breleigh Favre (USM) 21-13, 21-10Â
3. Annie Pringle/Jenna Gathright (UAB) def. Hallie Phelan/Haley Hop (USM) 21-11, 21-13Â
4. Valeria Siakidou Papakyriakou/Kai Norman (USM) def. Sarah Dickson/Adriana Pereira (UAB) 21-15, 22-20Â
5. Salli Napolitano/Arden Copping (UAB) def. Kaylie Beck/Melanie Miller (USM) 21-14, 21-19Â
Ext. Haley Rogers/Faith Miller (USM) def. Jessica Ennis/Pearl Moore (UAB) 21-6, 21-14
"Obviously, we would have liked to come away with a pair of wins, but overall I'm pleased with our play today," head coach Shawn Taylor said. "We've been working on some very specific things that will help us down the road. We're starting to see glimpses of it and just need to play our game and style for longer stretches. For many of our players, the UCA win was their first when as individuals/pairs and it was our first team win."
The Golden Eagles' first four opponents, all at the Seminole Beach Bash, were ranked in the top-18. Southern Miss also had the benefit of getting freshmen Haley Rogers and Faith Miller their first action on the extra court, making for five rookies out of 12 overall participants.
Kylie Grandy and Abbey Wilson picked up a clutch win on No. 1 against UCA, while Rogers/Miller and Valeria Siakidou Papakyriakou/Kai Norman had the distinction of being the only 2-0 pairs of the day.
"Kai and Vale kept that momentum rolling into our match against UAB," Taylor said. "They were super aggressive from the service line and in good side out rhythm. We had some pairs do some great things. We just came up a little short in the other matches. The wind and atmosphere have been a great challenge, and we're looking forward to a couple more opportunities to compete tomorrow."
Southern Miss will next battle No. 14 FIU (9:40 a.m.) and No. 9 TCU (4:10 p.m.) Saturday to close out the weekend.
Southern Miss 3, Central Arkansas 2
1. Kylie Grandy/Abbey Wilson (USM) def. Aly Brinkley/Colene Hamilton (UCA) 22-20, 21-17Â
2. Evelyn Griffith/Faith Hasness (UCA) def. Breleigh Favre/Olivia Hepworth (USM) 21-18, 18-21, 15-13Â
3. Makenna Schmitt/Shannon Stone (UCA) def. Hallie Phelan/Haley Hop (USM) 21-12, 21-17Â
4. Valeria Siakidou Papakyriakou/Kai Norman (USM) def. Julia Oravec/Bria Garmon (UCA) 21-14, 21-9Â
5. Kaylie Beck/Melanie Miller (USM) def. Kelsie Sager/Kayla Cook (UCA) 21-16, 21-18Â
Ext. Haley Rogers/Faith Miller (USM) def. Annie Berry/Payton Sproule (UCA) 21-13, 16-21, 15-13
UAB 4, Southern Miss 1Â
1. Rachel Tam/Mikayla Law-Heese (UAB) def. Abbey Wilson/Kylie Grandy (USM) 21-16, 15-21, 15-8Â
2. Dylynn Otte/Emma Andraka (UAB) def. Olivia Hepworth/Breleigh Favre (USM) 21-13, 21-10Â
3. Annie Pringle/Jenna Gathright (UAB) def. Hallie Phelan/Haley Hop (USM) 21-11, 21-13Â
4. Valeria Siakidou Papakyriakou/Kai Norman (USM) def. Sarah Dickson/Adriana Pereira (UAB) 21-15, 22-20Â
5. Salli Napolitano/Arden Copping (UAB) def. Kaylie Beck/Melanie Miller (USM) 21-14, 21-19Â
Ext. Haley Rogers/Faith Miller (USM) def. Jessica Ennis/Pearl Moore (UAB) 21-6, 21-14
Players Mentioned
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/ Beach Volleyball
/ Beach Volleyball
/ Beach Volleyball
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