SANTA CRUZ, Calif. — Saint Mary's beach volleyball went out to Santa Cruz for the second time this season, this time around for the annual West Coast Challenge. All seven teams from the West Coast Conference are present on the Santa Cruz sand, a preview of sorts of the WCC Championship in April. Saint Mary's picked up a win in the first match of the day against Portland 4-1 before losing to #7 Loyola Marymount 5-0. By virtue of winning against Portland, the Gaels move onto the Gold Bracket portion of play on Sunday.
 
Match 1: Saint Mary's 4, Portland 1
Saint Mary's jumbled up the lineup a tad on Saturday, and it paid off in the first match against Portland. After beating the Pilots 4-1 to begin March, the Gaels won by the same final, dropping only the twos en route to a victory. The first two wins came with the new-look pairs leading it off, as Allie Cataldo and Paola Peralta won in the fours with scores of 21-16 and 21-14. That meant Sadie Shipman was bumped up to the threes to play with Genevieve Bane, and they responded with wins of 21-12 and 21-15, putting SMC in a great spot.
 
After dropping the twos, the Gaels top flight of Hawley Harrer and Daniella Kensinger were able to clinch a victory for Saint Mary's by upstaging the Pilots top flight. With scores of 21-12 and 22-20, Harrer and Kensinger stayed hot atop the Gaels order and wrapped up a team win. Angie Bour and Hailee Garcia added another point for good measure, as they went three sets against their fifth-pair opponent, but came up clutch in the final set. A controlling win of 15-7 in the third set sealed the win for both Bour and Garcia.
 
RESULTS
(4) Allie Cataldo/Paola Peralta (SMC) def. Elin Larsson/Taylor Helle (UP) 21-16, 21-14
(3) Genevieve Bane/Sadie Shipman (SMC) def. Grace Zilbert/Brodie Baker (UP) 21-12, 21-15
(2) Noe Helm/Jayde Harris (UP) def. Karmin Brown/Hannah Couch (SMC) 21-16, 21-18
(1) Hawley Harrer/Daniella Kensinger (SMC) def. Alina Valenti/Anni Stammberg (UP) 21-12, 22-20
(5) Angie Bour/Hailee Garcia (SMC) def. Kei Mumulo/Sophie Lee (UP) 21-18, 19-21, 15-7
 
Match 2: #7 LMU 5, Saint Mary's 0
Saint Mary's saw LMU for the first time this season and saw why they are always contenders for the national championship. The Lions took all five sets in the second match of the day, though the Gaels top flight showed a lot of promise and nearly pulled off the upset. Hawley Harrer and Daniella Kensinger won the first set against Melanie Paul and Vilhelmiina Prihti 21-19 before the LMU pair came back and won the second set. The third set was competitive, but the Lions wound up winning 15-12 to cap off a perfect 5-0 day.
 
The result of a win for LMU was clinched in the twos, where Genevieve Bane and Sadie Shipman were moved up one slot from where they were earlier in the day. They fought with scores of 21-15 and 21-13, some of the closest scores of the afternoon. In the fives, Angie Bour and Hailee Garcia scored 17 points in the first set but would not get any closer than that.
 
RESULTS
(3) Chloe Hooker/Isabelle Reffel (LMU) def. Karmin Brown/Hannah Couch (SMC) 21-11, 21-12
(4) Jacinda Ramirez/Kirstine Gardner (LMU) def. Allie Cataldo/Paola Peralta (SMC) 21-10, 21-13
(2) Alisha Stevens/Abby Thorep (LMU) def. Genevieve Bane/Sadie Shipman (SMC) 21-15, 21-13
(5) Isabelle Tucker/Madi Firnett (LMU) def. Angie Bour/Hailee Garcia (SMC) 21-17, 21-11
(1) Melanie Paul/Vilhelmiina Prihti (LMU) def. Hawley Harrer/Daniella Kensinger (SMC) 19-21, 21-17, 15-12
 
UP NEXT
The final day of the West Coast Challenge takes place on Sunday, with the Gaels beginning play at 10:00 am. They will take on #18 Pepperdine in the day's first match, and from there, that will determine what they are playing for in the afternoon. A win would put them in the championship match at 2:00 pm, while a loss would put them in the third-place match at 1:00 pm.