SANTA CRUZ, Calif. — The beach volleyball spring season is roughly halfway through, and the annual mid-season tournament takes place this weekend. Saint Mary's plays in the annual West Coast Challenge on Saturday and Sunday, with West Coast Conference games on the docket. They begin against Portland at 11:00 am on Saturday and will advance in pool play to face other teams, pending the outcomes.
 
THE DETAILS
West Coast Challenge
Saturday-Sunday, March 25-26
Santa Cruz, Calif.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Last week was a light week for the Gaels, who played just one match on Saturday against the Cal Golden Bears. Saint Mary's went without winning a set in a 5-0 loss to the hosting Golden Bears, but they were almost able to take some sets against the 11^th-ranked team in the country. Karmin Brown and Hannah Couch took their opponents in the twos to 19 points, but dropped the first set 21-19. Allie Cataldo and Sadie Shipman scored 17 points in the final set of the fours, while the Gaels top flight and third flight also scored 17 points in a set. Ranked opponents have been tough for the Gaels to beat this season, going 0-7 against teams in the AVCA top-20
 
ABOUT THE FIELD
All seven beach volleyball programs in the WCC will be participating in the West Coast Challenge. LMU and Pepperdine have been at the top of the conference for years, and both are ranked inside the top-20 in the most recent AVCA poll (LMU #7, Pepperdine #18). The Gaels will open against Portland, who they already beat 4-1 on neutral courts at Stanford on March 1. Three teams in the conference have winning records: LMU (12-1), Pepperdine (8-3), and Santa Clara (6-4). Pacific and San Francisco are winless on the season., while Portland is just 2-7.
 
ABOUT THE FORMAT
Pool 1

1. LMU vs. Pacific  - 9am
2. Saint Mary's vs. Portland – 11am

 
Winner of Match #1 plays winner of match #2 at 1pm – Both winners advance to Gold Bracket Saturday
 
Loser of Match #1 plays loser of match #2 at 3pm – Both advance to Silver Bracket Saturday
 
Pool 2
 

1. Pepperdine vs. USF – 10am
2. Santa Clara vs. USF – noon
3. Pepperdine vs. Santa Clara – 2pm

 
Top 2 finishers in pool move onto Gold Bracket
Third place team moves to Silver Bracket 
 
Sunday 3/26
 
Gold Bracket
#1 Seed from Pool 1 plays #2 seed from Pool 2 – 9am
#1 Seed from Pool 2 plays #2 seed from Pool 1 – 10am
 
Losers play for 3^rd and 4^th place – 1pm
Winners play for 1^st and 2^nd place – 2pm
 
Silver Bracket (3 Team Pool)
#3 Seed from Pool 1 plays #3 seed from Pool 2 – 11am
#3 Seed from Pool 2 plays #4 seed from Pool 1 – 12pm
#3 Seed from Pool 1 plays #4 seed from Pool 1 – 3pm 
 
Winner of pool gets 5^th place overall
Second in pool gets 6^th place overall
Third in pool gets 7^th place overall