Beach Volleyball Finishes 2022 Season in C-USA Tournament Loss

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – The Golden Eagles' season comes to a close at the Conference USA Beach Volleyball Championships with a loss to (7) ULM. The 11-win season ties the previous win mark set in 2019 and 2021.

"Obviously not the way we'd want to see our season end," said Shawn Taylor, Southern Miss head coach. "I felt if we played well, we could have gone deep in this tournament. Credit to Olivia Hepworth and Taylor Pierce playing at the 3's. The had a solid tournament and really stepped up. Carmen Sanchez Delgado came on strong towards the end of the season. Her and Kai Norman also had a great tournament.

Finally, to our senior players. They decided after last season to come back and do it again. Breleigh Favre and Olivia Hepworth have been a part of this program since day 1. Melanie Miller has been a huge part of southern miss in the last 5 years. They have helped shape and forge this program. While we didn't have the wins we were hoping for today, they have set us up for future success."

(7) ULM 3, (6) Southern Miss 2
The Black & Gold faced ULM in their first game in the elimination bracket in the C-USA Beach Volleyball Championships. The match's winner would advance to face (4) UAB while the loser would return home with their season ended.

With the season on the line, the Golden Eagles took the sands against the Warhawks, looking to survive and advance.

Carmen Sanchez Delgado and Kai Norman took the first Southern Miss point of the day, topping the Warhawk 5s. In the first set, the pair won 21-11 before holding off ULM 21-19 in the second.

Taylor Pierce and Olivia Hepworth took the Golden Eagles' second point of the day at the third position, winning 21-11 and 21-18 in the first and second sets, respectively.

ULM rallied back, taking the fourth position in two sets. Hallie Phelan and Valeria Siakidou Papakyriakou forced extra points in each set. The first a 20-22 decision followed by a 23-25 heartbreaker.

At the top flight, Breleigh Favre and Aleksandra Chudzik fell in a three set thriller. ULM's first position pair took the first set 21-13 before dropping the second 21-19. In the pivotal rubber set, the Golden Eagles' first flight fell 8-15.

With the score evened, Southern Miss looked to flight No. 2 to seal the win. Vanessa Hurnikova and Kellie Garraway were locked in battle having fallen 21-23 in the first set.

In set two against the Warhawk second pair, Hurnikova/Garraway fell just short after a ULM comeback victory. The final score to secure the match was 18-21.

Tournament Information
(7) ULM continued on to a match against (4) UAB. The Warhawks fell to the Blazers 5-0.

UAB moved on in the elimination bracket to face (2) FIU and would come up short against the FIU attack, falling 4-1.

On the winner's side of the bracket, (3) Georgia State continued their dominance, beating top-seeded Florida Atlantic 3-2 to secure a berth in the championship match.

(1) Florida Atlantic, now relegated to the elimination bracket, faces (2) FIU tomorrow morning for a chance to take on Georgia State for the C-USA Title. The title match will be streamed on ESPN+.

(7) ULM 3, (6) Southern Miss 2
1. Brooks, Audrey/Gallant, Kayla (ULM) def. Breleigh Favre/Aleksandra Chudzik (USM) 21-13, 19-21, 15-8
2. Blazek, Julia/Adams, Rylin (ULM) def. Vanessa Hurnikova/Kellie Garraway (USM) 23-21, 21-18
3. Taylor Pierce/Olivia Hepworth (USM) def. Moreland, Elizabeth/Hoven, Brooke (ULM) 21-11, 21-18
4. Nowak, Kaitlyn/Reynolds, Avery (ULM) def. Hallie Phelan/Valeria Siakidou Papakyriakou (USM) 22-20, 25-23
5. Carmen Sanchez Delgado/Kai Norman (USM) def. Elder, Abigail/Bufkin, Abbey (ULM) 21-11, 21-19

– Twitter: @SouthernMissBVB | SouthernMiss.com | Instagram: @southernmissbvb –

Beach Volleyball Finishes 2022 Season in C-USA Tournament Loss

Players Mentioned

Ola Chudzik

Breleigh Favre

Kellie Garraway

Olivia Hepworth

Vanessa Hurnikova

Melanie Miller

Kai Norman

Hallie Phelan

Taylor Pierce

Carmen Sanchez Delgado

Valeria Siakidou Papakyriakou