MORAGA, Calif. — Saint Mary's beach volleyball hit the home sand for the second time in three days, taking on a pair of Northern California opponents to close out the weekend. Up first was a battle with #9 Cal, which was taken by the ninth-ranked Golden Bears 5-0. Saint Mary's came back strong and closed out the day with a 5-0 win of their own over Cabrillo College, giving the Gaels a 12-15 record after the weekend.
 
Match 1: #9 Cal 5, Saint Mary's 0
 
The Gaels were unable to take a set from #9 Cal in the opening match on the day, but they had some close calls as the matches progressed. The fives and twos were awfully consistent, but the Gaels just did not have enough firepower to overcome the Golden Bears. Angie Bour and Hannah Glick fell by finals of 21-14 and 21-15, and Genevieve Bane and Sadie Shipman lost 21-16 and 21-14. At that point, Cal had officially clinched the match.
 
The threes made it a bit more interesting. Karmin Brown and Hannah Couch took it to bonus points in the opening set, but lost the final points to drop it 22-20. Their second set nearly went to bonus points as well, but it ended at 21-19 as Cal got their fourth team point. In the top flight, Hawley Harrer and Daniella Kensinger lost by the same scores as the threes, but they were flipped, with the 22-20 decision coming in the second set that would have forced a deciding set.
 
RESULTS
(4) Lexi McKeown/Ella Dreibholz (Cal) def. Allie Cataldo/Paola Peralta (SMC) 21-15, 21-6
(5) Ava Mann/Alex Young (Cal) def. Angie Bour/Hannah Glick (SMC) 21-14, 21-15
(2) Maya Gessner/Gia Fisher (Cal) def. Genevieve Bane/Sadie Shipman (SMC) 21-16, 21-14
(3) Ashley Delgado/Ainsley Radell (Cal) def. Karmin Brown/Hannah Couch (SMC) 22-20, 21-19
(1) Sierra Caffo/Liz Waters (Cal) def. Hawley Harrer/Daniella Kensinger (SMC) 21-19, 22-20
 
Match 2: Saint Mary's 5, Cabrillo 0
 
Saint Mary's got it rolling in the second match of the doubleheader, nearly going perfect on the day against Cabrillo College. They only lost one set, and the match got started strong with the threes and fours. Karmin Brown and Hannah Couch were able to get past the Cabrillo threes without trouble, winning with finals of 21-12 and 21-11. Meanwhile, it was Allie Cataldo and Paola Peralta who were cruising in the fours, never letting Cabrillo get to double-digits with wins of 21-6 and 21-9.
 
The top flight for SMC clinched the victory, with Hawley Harrer and Daniella Kensinger earning set wins of 21-10 and 21-13 to secure the team win for the Gaels. Genevieve Bane and Sadie Shipman had to endure two more tough battles in the twos, but they prevailed with final scores of 22-20 and 21-18. The one set that Saint Mary's lost came in the fives, but Angie Bour and Hannah Glick were able to win the third and final set 15-10 to cap off the sweep for the home team.
 
RESULTS
(3) Karmin Brown/Hannah Couch (SMC) def. Jaz Tubbs/Emma Martin (CC) 21-12, 21-11
(4) Allie Cataldo/Paola Peralta (SMC) def. Renee Parker/Lila Wright (CC) 21-6, 21-9
(1) Hawley Harrer/Daniella Kensinger (SMC) def. Alana Patyk/Lindsay Heller (CC) 21-10, 21-13
(2) Genevieve Bane/Sadie Shipman (SMC) def. Natalie Taggart/Erin Eschlemen (CC) 22-20, 21-18
(5) Angie Bour/Hannah Glick (SMC) def. Kelea Saxton/Paola Jacobs (CC) 21-12, 14-21, 15-10
 
UP NEXT
Next week is the final week of the regular season, with four matchups that all have intrigue. First, the Gaels will head to Santa Clara for a WCC contest against the Broncos on Wednesday, April 19. They will then head to Stanford to take on #7 Grand Canyon and #9 Cal on neutral sand on Friday, April 21. The regular season ends on Saturday, April 22 with Senior Day against Sierra College, scheduled to start at 1:00 pm.