PALO ALTO, Calif. — Saint Mary's Beach Volleyball began the final weekend of the 2022 regular season with some of the best competition they've seen all year. In a way, it sort of bookends the regular season: opening in Hawaii against four ranked teams, and then taking on four teams inside the Top-25 in the final weekend of regular season competition. The Gaels fought hard all day long, but ultimately dropped both matches on Saturday to (RV) Washington and No. 7 Grand Canyon, falling to 15-14 overall on the season with two matches remaining.
 
Match 1: (RV) Washington 4, Saint Mary's 1
The first matchup of the day saw a few decisions that could have gone either way, and if the Gaels had won those contests, they could have taken the match. In the twos, Jasmin Suarez and Jennifer "Boo" Laird narrowly fell in the first set by a final of 22-20, taking it bonus points, before dropping the second set. Hawley Harrer and Aeriel Sundt won their first set 21-14 in the fours, but then dropped close contests in the second and third sets that wound up putting Washington ahead 2-0 in the overall team score.
 
In the fives, once the match had already been determined, Ella Sandt and Genevieve Bane continued to play strong, winning their first set of the morning with a 22-20 final, but could not overcome the Huskies in the final two sets, losing in three. The lone win came in the threes, when Karmin Brown and Makenna Joyce were able to cruise past Washington 21-13 in the first set before battling in an instant classic in the second set. It went deep into bonus points, but the Gaels were able to get the last two and win a thriller with a final of 27-25, securing the win.
 
RESULTS
(2) Paloma Bowman/Scarlett Dahl (UW) def. Jasmin Suarez/Jennifer "Boo" Laird (SMC) 22-20, 21-13
(4) Ashley Shook/Hanneh Yerex (UW) def. Hawley Harrer/Aeriel Sundt (SMC) 14-21, 21-17, 15-12
(1) Natalie Robinson/Chloe Loreen (UW) def. Chandler Cowell/Selbie Christensen (SMC) 21-19, 21-16
(5) Emma Calle/Kyra Petersen (UW) def. Ella Sandt/Genevieve Bane (SMC) 20-22, 21-15, 15-7
(3) Karmin Brown/Makenna Joyce (SMC) def. Audra Wilmes/Olivia Mikkelsen (UW) 21-13, 27-25
 
Match 2: No. 7 Grand Canyon 5, Saint Mary's 0
As it was during the morning match against the Huskies, Saint Mary's showed a lot of fight and nearly pulled off some wins against a Top-10 team in the country. The fours and the twos both went into three sets, and it was Harrer and Sundt again leading the way, taking the first set against Grand Canyon with a 21-17 win. They dropped the final two sets, including a 15-13 loss in the third set that was closely contested throughout. In the twos, Suarez and Laird battled back to win the second set 21-18, taking their match to three sets. It was another back-and-forth battle, but the Gaels lost 15-12 to fall behind 0-2 overall.
 
The remaining three flights of the afternoon all went to Grand Canyon in straight sets, though Brown and Joyce nearly were able to force a third set with their 21-19 loss in the second set. They held a lead for a decent portion of the battle, ultimately running out of steam at the end of a long day on the sand.
 
RESULTS
(4) Krista Rowan/Madi Kelaz (GCU) def. Hawley Harrer/Aeriel Sundt (SMC) 17-21, 21-9, 15-13
(2) Ali Hansen/Allanis Naras-Sanchez (GCU) def. Jasmin Suarez/Jennifer "Boo" Laird (SMC) 21-15, 18-21, 15-12
(5) Cami Sanchez/Dana Ruskic (GCU) def. Ella Sandt/Genevieve Bane (SMC) 21-13, 21-13
(1) Anaya Evans/Jessica Vastine (GCU) def. Chandler Cowell/Selbie Christensen (SMC) 21-11, 21-11
(3) Abbie Hughes/Samaya Marin (GCU) def. Karmin Brown/Makenna Joyce (SMC) 21-15, 21-19
 
UP NEXT
Saint Mary's will get another crack it tomorrow in their final two beach matches of the regular season. The Gaels will face two ranked teams at Stanford tomorrow, both residing in the Pac-12. No. 11 Cal is up first for Saint Mary's, a rarity that this will mark the first matchup of the season between the two teams. First serve is set for 11:00 am, and then the Gaels will engage with the hosts of the weekend, No. 8 Stanford, at 5:00 pm.