YOUNGSVILLE, La. – The New Orleans Privateers beach volleyball team pushed Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and HCU to the limit before ending their weekend with a win against Nicholls at the Southland Mid-Conference at Sugar Beach in Youngsville.
DAY ONE:
McNeese-4 New Orleans-1
The New Orleans Privateers got a win through their flight four pair of
Lucianna Alexander and
Renata Dykstra but it was not enough to overcome the Cowgirls in what was the Privateers' third loss of the season against them.
Alexander and Dykstra held through a tight first set that did not have more than one point of separation through any of the first five side switches. The Privateers then rattled off the last five points of the second set to win 21-19, 21-19.
However, McNeese took the other four matches including a three-set battle at flight two where Tori Simmang and Rylee Lansing battled back from a set down to win 17-21, 21-17, 15-7.
A&M-Corpus Christi-3 New Orleans-2
The Privateers gave the defending conference champion Islanders all they could handle and picked up wins at flight one and four but it was not enough to overcome the Islanders.
Alexander and Dykstra struck once again as the pair had to come back from down a set. They took over the second set toward the end and went on a 5-0 run to close out a 21-12 second set. That set up the third which they were able to secure by a 15-11 score.
Cassie and
Ellie Sieling also provided a three-set win, which went extra rallies in the final set. The twin sisters scored on four of the last five rallies to snatch the second set 21-19 and they used that momentum to hold off the Islanders' top pair 16-14 in the third set.
The remaining three matches were all won by the Islanders in straight sets. A key first set taken by the Islanders' flight three pair at 24-22 helped spring them to a 22-11 win in the second set.
DAY TWO:
HCU-3 New Orleans-2
It was another tight battle that the Privateers landed on the short end of to start day two against the Huskies.
The Privateers once again got wins at flight one and four. This time it was
Mona Salgado and
Kylie Lyons who provided the flight four victory. After taking the first set 21-19, the pair lost the second 21-15. However, they persevered in a 15-12 deciding set to keep the flight undefeated on the weekend.
The Sieling sisters also controlled their match throughout in a 21-13, 21-14 win. The Sielings went on an 11-3 run to finish out the opening set and scored 10 of the last 14 points in the second.
The key that swung the match HCU's way was at flight five. Their pair of Claudia Verdejo and Dariya Tlevlessova rallied back from losing the first set in extra rallies and the duo scored a 16-14 third set to help vault the Huskies to the win.
New Orleans-3 Nicholls-2
The Privateers ended the weekend on a high note by holding off the Colonels after earning wins at flights one through three.
All three of their wins came in straight sets. The Sieling sisters notched their third win of the weekend 21-14, 21-14. At flight two,
Brooke Dow and
Ashley Salazar notched a 21-14, 21-19 victory.
Alexander and Dykstra teamed up for their third win of the weekend as they scored a 21-14, 21-14 victory.
Nicholls won a three-set thriller 15-12 in the decider at flight four and took a straight set decision at flight five.
NEXT UP
The Privateers will play Nicholls in the Bayou Beach Battle next Friday starting at 12 p.m.
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