In their second day of competition down in Cleveland, Georgia, the Bruins beach volleyball team fell in both of their matches to Erskine College (0-5) and Lincoln Memorial University (1-4).
"I continue to be amazed at how hard our players are working to get better at the beach game," said Head Coach Vickie Denny. "The beach game is very different than indoors so they are making adjustments and working hard to compete. This weekend was a big step forward as we continue to develop our new program. We are thankful for this opportunity to play."
Coming off of two games yesterday, the Bruins had an early start to the day as they hit the sand for an 8:30 a.m. start against Erskine College.
The Bruins and Flying Fleet met a couple of weeks ago in preseason, but had a much better showing today. Kayla Laird and Bailee Hunger came out and won their first set but dropped the second to force a third set that was close from start to finish. Bailee Hunger had a big match both at the net and serving. The match of the dual came down to Eden Swihart and Camila Silva squaring off against Erskine's top pair. This became the best match of the day with partners as Silva and Swihart battled head to head against Erskine's best pairs. Their first set went back and forth with great offensive and defensive plays. Set one ended with the Bruins winning 27-25. Erskine came back to win the second set to force a third set. In the end the Flying Fleet secured the victory but not without a tenacious performance by Silva and Swihart.
After hard fought games, the Bruins weren't able to take any games and fell 0-5 to Erskine College.
Next up, the Bruins would face the Lincoln Memorial University Railsplitters. The Bruins battled hard, but four of the five Bob Jones teams were unable to secure any set wins against the Railsplitters. Andrea Villaverde and Faith Blalock were paired together for this match and were able to win both of their sets to come away with the single victory for the Bruins.
In their second match of the day, the Bruins fell 1-4 to Lincoln Memorial University.
Next week, the Bruins will travel to LaGrange, Georgia and will meet up again against Lincoln Memorial University as well as LaGrange College on Friday and Saturday.
BJU Bruins, 0 | Erskine College, 5
1. Mallory Carter/ Morgan Browne (EC) def. Eden Swihart/Camila Silva (BJU) 25-27, 21-17,15-11
2. Allison Dutterer/Olivia Browne (EC) def. Timbre Cruz/Emma Riddle BJU) 21-11, 21-9*
3. MJ Cackett/Emily Gilbert (EC) def. Hannah Prince/Caroline Smith (BJU) 21-7,21-12*
4. Kylie McKeane/Kaile Tusamalatele (EC) def. Katelyn Landkrohn/Caitlyn Benson (BJU) 21-10, 21- 13*
5. Katarina Diaz/Micah Diffley (EC) def. Kayla Laird/Bailee Hunger (BJU) 18-21, 21-13,15-12*
6. Anna Childers/Maisy Garner (EC) def Andrea Villaverde/Delaney Nething (BJU) 21-15, 21-13*
BJU Bruins, 1 | Lincoln Memorial University, 4
1. Katie Cardenas/Kristen Moehring (LMU) def. Eden Swihart/Timbre Cruz (BJU) 21-14, 21-15
2. Lydia Thurman/Gabriela(LMU) def. Hannah Prince/Emma Riddle (BJU) 21-15,21-12
3. Sevgi Koyoncu/Katie Bedel (LMU) def. Katelyn Landkrohn/Caitlyn Benson (BJU) 21-18, 21-14
4. Emily Walter/Emma WinFord (LMU) def. Bailee Hunger/Caroline Smith (BJU) 21-7, 21-7
5. Andrea Villaverde/Faith Blalock (BJU) def. Kiley Bowins//Ketura Margaret (LMU) 21-18,21-19
6. Michera Muffett (LMU) def Delaney Nething/Kylah Laird (BJU) 21-12, 21-14
