WAIKIKI, Hawaii — The 2023 spring beach season begins for Saint Mary's this weekend in warmer waters, as the Gaels return to Hawaii for the Outrigger Duke Kahanamoku Beach Classic. The annual event features some of the best beach teams in the country, with matches taking place on Thursday and Friday and the playoffs taking place on Saturday.
 
THE DETAILS
Thursday, February 23
Saint Mary's at No. 10 Hawaii – 9:00 am HT
Saint Mary's vs. No. 1 UCLA – 11:30 am HT
 
Friday, February 24
Saint Mary's vs. Stephen F. Austin – 11:30 am HT
Saint Mary's vs. No. 9 Stanford – 2:00 pm HT
 
Saturday, February 25
Quarterfinal – 9:00 am HT
Semifinal #1 – 10:15 am HT
Semifinal #2 – 11:30 am HT
Third Place Match – 12:45 pm HT
Championship – 2:00 pm HT
 
Links to live scoring for all matches of the tournament
 
LAST SEASON
Saint Mary's finished under .500 last season with a record of 16-18, but they were great against teams outside of the AVCA Top-20 (16-4) but they struggled against ranked teams (0-14). SMC finished fourth in the WCC after falling in the West Coast Conference Tournament to Santa Clara. Both of the top two pairs for Saint Mary's from one season ago are gone, with Jasmin Suarez/Jennifer "Boo" Laird (11-8 in the ones) and Chandler Cowell/Selbie Christensen (11-5 in the twos) finishing their Saint Mary's careers last year. Their best stretch of the season came to begin the month of March, where the Gaels won 12 out of 13 matches after the opening tournament in Hawaii.
 
PRESEASON NEWS
The Gaels hired Janice Harrer as their new head beach volleyball coach for the 2023 season. Harrer has spent the last five seasons helping build the Oregon beach volleyball program from the ground up. Harrer is one of the most experienced and successful beach volleyball players of all-time, with a career that spanned 18 seasons. She racked up 25 professional titles across the AVP, WPVA, and FIVB Tours, and won a host of awards including a WPVA Defensive Player of the Year award in 1990. She also owns 13 combined U.S. and World Championships.
 
Hawley Harrer, the daughter of Janice, was named to the preseason All-WCC team. The preseason honor for Harrer should come as no surprise given the success she had during the indoor season in 2022, and her previous success on the sand. Harrer was named Second Team All-WCC following her fifth year season indoor, and has been named Second Team All-WCC in beach volleyball, back in 2021. Last year, Harrer went 13-10, with most of her appearances with then-teammate Aeriel Sundt coming in the fours. Harrer battled back from a knee injury sustained during indoor season to finish the year on a high note, and with full health this year, she is an obvious choice for the preseason team.
 
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS
Some of the best teams in the NCAA will be featured in this tournament, with Stephen F. Austin being the lone non-ranked program the Gaels will see. One of the Gaels current student-athletes, Sadie Shipman, transferred from Stephen F. Austin, who went 13-16 last year. Preseason No. 1 UCLA lost to Florida State in the semifinals of the NCAA Championship last year. The Gaels see Stanford often every year, but they had a disappointing finish at the NCAA Championship, losing in the first round. Hawaii also got bounced early, and finished second in this event last season.