BeachBows Split On Final Day Of Best In The West Tournament

LAGUNA BEACH, Calif. -- The No. 17 University of Hawaii beach volleyball team concluded the Best in the West tournament by splitting a pair of matches Sunday in Laguna Beach. The BeachBows fell to No. 6 Cal Poly, 4-1, before capping the weekend with a 3-2 win over No. 16 North Florida.

UH (12-15) ended the three-day tournament with a 2-3 mark overall. UH's three losses came at the hands of UCLA, USC and Cal Poly, all teams ranked in the top seven nationally.

In the first match of the morning UH faced conference nemesis Cal Poly (21-3) who shut out UH on their home turf just two weeks ago in the Big West Challenge. The Mustangs (21-3) again got the better of the 'Bows but UH was able to snag a point through the grit of No. 4 pair Sophie Buschmann and Sydney Miller. The duo dropped the first set 21-16 against Quinn Perry and Maddy Byrne, but fought back for 21-17 and 15-10 decisions in the ensuing two sets to notch a UH point. Cal Poly won the remaining courts in straight sets as the Mustangs continued their hot steak with their 19th win in the last 20 matches.

In its final match of the weekend, UH faced North Florida for the first time ever on the sand. The 'Bows jumped out to a 2-0 dual match lead with wins by Buschmann and Miller at the No. 4 and Sarah Burton and Caprice Lorenzo at the No. 2 court. UNF (17-6) took court No. 3 to make it 2-1 and needed the final two courts to pull off the comeback.

But the top flight of Amirah Ali and Alana Embry denied the Ospreys with a 21-17, 23-21 win over Presley Murray and Mackenzie Murphy. The UNF duo was poised to force a third set but a resilient Ali and Embry reeled off the final three points of the seconds set to stave off defeat and seal the dual match for UH.

UH now returns home for its final two regular-season home matches of the year when it hosts Senior Weekend on the Manoa campus. UH will face nationally-ranked Cal and Grand Canyon in double round-robin action, April 12-13 at the Ching Complex and will honor out-going players Ali, Embry, Kendall Kaelin and Cami Loker.

Cal Poly 4 Hawaii 1
1. Piper Ferch/Erin Inskeep (CP) def. Ali/Embry (UH) 21-10, 21-15
2. Izzy Martinez/Logan Walter (CP) def. Lorenzo/Burton (UH) 21-15, 21-16
3. Ella Connor/Madi Nichols (CP) def. Jasmine Wandeler/Jesse Mann (UH) 21-13, 21-15
4. Miller/Buschmann (UH) def. Perry/Byrne (CP) 16-21, 21-17, 15-10
5. Abbey Reinard/Elise Lenahan (CP) def. Kristen Serrano/Sydney Amiatu (UH) 21-19, 21-17
Order of finish: 1,3,2*,5,4

Hawai'i 3 North Florida 2
1. Ali/Embry (UH) def. Presley Murray/Mackenzie Murphy (UNF) 21-17, 23-21
2. Burton/Lorenzo (UH) def. Madison Espy/Mariana Feliciano Sanchez (UNF) 21-17, 21-11
3. Cameron Humphries/Taylor Pierce (UNF) def. Mann/Wandeler (UH) 21-17, 21-17
4. Buschmann/Miller (UH) def. Andrea Da Silva/Hayden Wooldridge (UNF) 21-18, 21-19
5. Amiatu/Serrano (UH) def. Emily Guenter/Anne Marie Hardouin (UNF) 21-17, 22-20
Order of finish: 2, 4, 3, 1*, 5

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Players Mentioned

#2 Cami Loker: 5' 9"; Sophomore

#4 Amirah Ali: 6' 2"; Junior

#14 Sydney Amiatu: 5' 10"; Sophomore

#21 Sarah Burton: 6' 0"; Junior

#44 Sophie Buschmann: 5' 11"; Sophomore

#8 Alana Embry: 5' 9"; Junior

#16 Kendall Kaelin: 6' 0"; Junior

#24 Caprice Lorenzo: 5' 9"; Junior

#9 Jesse Mann: 5' 11"; Junior

#11 Sydney Miller: 6' 0"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#2 Cami Loker
: 5' 9"; Sophomore

#4 Amirah Ali
: 6' 2"; Junior

#14 Sydney Amiatu
: 5' 10"; Sophomore

#21 Sarah Burton
: 6' 0"; Junior

#44 Sophie Buschmann
: 5' 11"; Sophomore

#8 Alana Embry
: 5' 9"; Junior

#16 Kendall Kaelin
: 6' 0"; Junior

#24 Caprice Lorenzo
: 5' 9"; Junior

#9 Jesse Mann
: 5' 11"; Junior

#11 Sydney Miller
: 6' 0"; Junior