Beach Volleyball Comes Up Short in Three Matches at the Tiger Beach Challenge

BATON ROUGE, La. – Southern Miss falls to 0-7 after three close losses at the Tiger Beach Challenge.

The Golden Eagles saw tremendous improvement from last week but came up short in three matches today at the Tiger Beach Challenge. The Black & Gold fell against UAB, Tulane and No. 6 LSU by scores of 2-3, 2-3 and 5-0, respectively.

UAB 3, Southern Miss 2
In the first match of the day against C-USA member UAB, the Golden Eagles managed to take two sets from the Blazers thanks to a quick victory from Southern Miss third pairing Hallie Phelan and Olivia Hepworth, as well as a three-set slugfest on court two courtesy of Vanessa Hurnikova and Aleksandra Chudzik.

"We started off the day with UAB. It was a well contested match and great for some pairs to break through and earn some wins," said head coach Shawn Taylor. "The match came down to the last court. In stretches and on certain courts we played well, but it felt like we left a couple of points on the sand. It would have been great to capitalize on those. Good teams find ways to win and this morning it was UAB."

UAB outlasted Southern Miss on courts four and five with each match also spanning three sets. Court four featured Taylor Pierce and Reagan Sandlin while the fifth pair consisted of Valeria Siakidou Papakyriakou and Kai Norman.

Southern Miss' first pairing consisted of Kellie Garraway and Breleigh Favre. The Golden Eagles would maintain this lineup – the same lineup as last weekend – for the rest of the day.

Tulane 3, Southern Miss 2
After a brief hiatus, the Golden Eagles played back-to-back matches at 6 and 8 P.M. The first of the two nightcaps was against familiar foe Tulane. Southern Miss entered the match 0-7 against the Green Wave all-time.

"The Tulane match was even more gutting. Taylor Pierce and Reagan Sandlin notched our first team point and their first ever collegiate wins as individuals," said Coach Taylor. "Hallie Phelan and Olivia Hepworth had a great day and were able to even the team score 2-2. We had a chance to take court one and we played incredibly well. They were just a bit better."

The Golden Eagles took an early 1-0 lead at the hands of fourth pairing Pierce and Sandlin 21-18, 21-18 victory. Finishing second, fifth pair Papakyriakou and Sandlin fell in two sets. Courts one and three needed three sets to reach decisions and Southern Miss would split the two matches. The pair of Phelan/Hepworth took the third set 15-9, winning the second and last set of the game.

No. 6 LSU 5, Southern Miss 0
Rounding out the night, the Black & Gold faced their toughest opponent of the year in host, No. 6 LSU. The Tigers looked the part of a top-ten team, sweeping the Golden Eagles in straight sets. Phelan and Hepworth came within two during the second set of court three, the closest Southern Miss would come to taking a set from the Tigers.

"In the nightcap against LSU I thought we continued to compete well," says Taylor. "LSU is a great team and gives you very little. We were able to make some adjustments an dI thought our team did a great job of looking to find solutions. We just came up short."

Up Next
Southern Miss finishes the Tiger Beach Challenge tomorrow with two matches against Texas A&M – Corpus Christi (Noon CT) and Texas A&M – Kingsville (3 P.M. CT). TAMU-CC fell to No. 6 LSU and No. 4 Loyola Marymount earlier today by scores of 1-4 and 5-0, respectively. TAMUK fell 0-5 in separate matches against Tulane and No. 6 LSU.

Looking to tomorrow, Coach Taylor said, "We continue to get better every time our feet hit the sand. Tomorrow is another opportunity and we are looking forward to it."

For updates and more, follow Southern Miss Beach Volleyball on Twitter, @SouthernMissBVB, Instagram, @southernmissbvb, or on our website, SouthernMiss.com.

UAB 3, Southern Miss 2
1. Rachel Tam/Adriana Pereira (UAB) def. Breleigh Favre/Kellie Garraway (USM) 21-17, 21-17
2. Vanessa Hurnikova/Aleksandra Chudzik (USM) def. Dylnn Otte/Emma Andraka (UAB) 21-16, 23-25, 15-13
3. Hallie Phelan/Olivia Hepworth (USM) def. Mikayla Law-Heese/Arden Copping (UAB) 21-18, 21-18
4. Jessica Ennis/Ella Alexander (UAB) def. Taylor Pierce/Reagan Sandlin (USM) 21-18, 21-23, 15-2
5. Jenna Gathright/Naomi Ortiz (UAB) def. Valeria Papakyriakou/Kai Norman (USM) 17-21, 21-19, 15-7
Ext. Pearl Moore/Jessica Twilley (UAB) def. Kaylie Beck/Melanie Miller (USM) 21-16, 14-21, 15-10

Tulane 3, Southern Miss 2
1. Kendall Peters/Maddie Speicher (TULANE) def. Breleigh Favre/Kellie Garraway (USM) 19-21, 21-18, 17-15
2. Samantha Mehlman/Lara Torruella (TULANE) def. Vanessa Hurnikova/Aleksandra Chudzik (USM) 21-15, 21-19
3. Hallie Phelan/Olivia Hepworth (USM) def. Ashton Mares/Sara Hall (TULANE) 21-18, 19-21, 15-9
4. Taylor Pierce/Reagan Sandlin (USM) def. Samantha Green/Josie Cole (TULANE) 21-11, 21-16
5. Savka Popovic/Haley Gibson (TULANE) def. Valeria Papakyriakou/Kai Norman (USM) 21-19, 21-1
Ext. Emily Heintzelman/Sophia Gammarino (TULANE) def. Melanie Miller/Kaylie Beck (USM) 21-8, 21-10

#6 LSU 5, Southern Miss 0
1. Ashlyn Rasnick-Pope/Bella Bauman (LSU) def. Breleigh Favre/Kellie Garraway (USM) 21-14, 21-12
2. Parker Bracken/Kylie Deberg (LSU) def. Vanessa Hurnikova/Aleksandra Chudzik (USM) 21-17, 21-16
3. Reilly Allred/Holly Carlton (LSU) def. Hallie Phelan/Olivia Hepworth (USM) 21-17, 21-19
4. Kelli Greene-Agnew/Grace Seits (LSU) def. Taylor Pierce/Reagan Sandlin (USM) 21-13, 21-9
5. Ellie Shank/Sierra Caffo (LSU) def. Valeria Papakyriakou/Kai Norman (USM) 21-12, 21-13
Ext. Allison Coens/Lara Boos (LSU) def. Melanie Miller/Kaylie Beck (USM) 21-13, 21-13

Beach Volleyball Comes Up Short in Three Matches at the Tiger Beach Challenge

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Players Mentioned

Kaylie Beck

Ola Chudzik

Breleigh Favre

Kellie Garraway

Olivia Hepworth

Vanessa Hurnikova

Melanie Miller

Kai Norman

Hallie Phelan

Taylor Pierce

Reagan Sandlin

Valeria Siakidou Papakyriakou