MONROE, La. – The Texas A&M-Kingsville beach volleyball team completed a successful trip to Monroe, La. for the ULM Beach Bash by knocking off a pair of Division I opponents on Saturday afternoon, starting with a 3-2 upset of the Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks and capping the day with a 5-0 sweep of the Nicholls State Colonels.
"We're showing a lot of skill improvement," said coach Tanya Allen. "I'm especially proud of how well we celebrated and how emotionally strong the team is proving to be."
These victories push TAMUK's record above .500 to 8-7 and the Javelinas have won six of their last seven matches.
TAMUK vs. ULM
In their third matchup against the Warhawks this season and sixth in program history, the Javelinas broke through and earned their first win over ULM.
The home team started strong with wins in the fourth and sixth flights, but freshmen Nicole Murff (San Antonio, Texas) and Christina Gragasin (Celina, Texas) continued a recent run of success with a straight sets, 21-11, 21-13, victory and the top three flights began with the score tied at 1-1.
Senior Haley Hutchinson (Georgetown, Texas) and sophomore Macy Berg (San Antonio, Texas) pushed the Javs into the lead by capturing the third flight, 21-15, 21-14 and the win was sealed by TAMUK's top pairing. Freshmen Tenley Housler (Bulverde, Texas) and Whitney Walker (Bellingham, Texas) won the first set 21-13 before the Warhawks evened the score to force a third set, but Housler and Walker persevered in 15-10 fashion, securing a 3-2 win.
TAMUK vs. Nicholls State
The second contest of the day proved to be a much easier one for the Javs, who didn't drop a single set and picked up their fourth sweep of the year.
Murff and Gragasin stretched their win streak as a tandem to seven, collecting the fourth flight, 21-9, 21-14. Juniors TaylorLynn Noga (Anchorage, Alaska) and Kadi Shipman (Georgetown, Texas) registered a 21-18, 21-13 triumph in the fifth flight and sophomore Shelby Tate (New Braunfels, Texas) and freshman Lauren Kadilis (Spring Branch, Texas) won the sixth flight, 21-5, 21-8.
TAMUK's top three flights kept the shutout intact, starting with Walker and Housler, who put up a 21-9, 21-11 final. Senior Madison Brabham (Kingwood, Texas) and freshman Kylexus Block (San Antonio, Texas) pocketed the No. 2 match, 21-7, 21-14. For Berg and Hutchinson, they came out on top 21-8, 21-18.
Houston is the next stop for Allen and her student-athletes, who will play three times in two days, beginning with a Friday morning match against Abilene Christian at the Houston Baptist Tournament. To stay current with everything related to Javelina Beach Volleyball all season long, follow @JavelinaBeach on Twitter and @javelinasports and @JavelinaBeach on Instagram, like Javelina Sports on Facebook and visit Javelinasports.com.
