STANFORD, Calif. — Saint Mary's beach volleyball hit the road one final time in the regular season, making a third trip to Stanford on the season. This time the Gaels did not face the hosting Cardinal, but rather took on #7 Grand Canyon and #9 Cal. Facing two more ranked teams as the season winds down, the Gaels got a great test of what they will see at the WCC Championship. Saint Mary's lost both matches on the day, 5-0 to the Lopes, and 4-1 to the Golden Bears, running their record to 13-17 with one game left on the weekend.
 
Match 1: #7 Grand Canyon 5, Saint Mary's 0
 
The first match that came down to the wire came in the fours, when Allie Cataldo and Paola Peralta took Sarah Dickson and Dana Roskic of Grand Canyon to 21-19 in the opening set. Their second set was a 21-15 decision, but they were never too far behind to think a comeback would not happen. Things continued to be competitive for the Gaels top flight of Hawley Harrer and Daniella Kensinger, particularly in their second set, when they battled Abbie Hughes and Allison Hansen to a 21-19 final score in the second set, with it tied as late as 13-13.
 
Saint Mary's did pick up a set win in their final pair of the day, coming in the fives. After Angie Bour and Hannah Glick dropped the opening set, they overcame a 20-16 deficit in the second set by scoring six-straight points to win 22-20, advancing to a third set. The Gaels also got a set win in the exhibition flight, which featured Cameron Martinez and Grace Travis for SMC. They won their opening set 21-17, and led for virtually the entire set. The second set was tightly contested, but they dropped it 21-17, ending the exhibition in a tie.
 
RESULTS
(2) Samaya Morin/Allanis Navas (GCU) def. Genevieve Bane/Sadie Shipman (SMC) 21-15, 21-13
(4) Sarah Dickson/Dana Roskic (GCU) def. Allie Cataldo/Paola Peralta (SMC) 21-19, 21-15
(3) Anaya Evans/Cami Sanchez (GCU) def. Karmin Brown/Hannah Couch (SMC) 21-10, forfeit
(1) Allison Hansen/Abbie Hughes (GCU) def. Hawley Harrer/Daniella Kensinger (SMC) 21-15, 21-19
(5) Brooke Birch/Krista Rowan (GCU) def. Angie Bour/Hannah Glick (SMC) 21-18, 20-22, 15-7
(6) Cameron Martinez/Grace Travis (SMC) tied Sydnee Broadway/Elly Collins (GCU) 21-17, 17-21 (exhibition)
 
Match 2: #9 Cal 4, Saint Mary's 1
 
The Gaels got a point against Cal in their very last match, with Hawley Harrer and Daniella Kensinger coming through in a dramatic fashion. They closed out the Cal top flight in the first set 21-17, but things were a bit more dicey in the second. They had to come from behind, where they trailed 19-16, to force bonus points, where both pairs continued to trade back-and-forth, but neither could get two-in-a-row to win the set. Finally, Harrer and Kensinger took care of business and won 26-24 in the highest-scoring set of the year, earning a team point for SMC.
 
Saint Mary's had to shuffle around their lineups, with Hannah Couch sidelined due to illness. That put Cameron Martinez into the twos with Genevieve Bane, the first time that Martinez has been above the five spot all season. They scored 15 points in their second set, but could not earn a victory. That also paired Karmin Brown with Sadie Shipman for the first time since the fall semester, but after dropping a 22-20 first set, they couldn't get any closer.
 
RESULTS
(4) Ella Dreibholz/Lexi McKeown (Cal) def. Allie Cataldo/Paola Peralta (SMC) 21-12, 21-11
(2) Ashley Delgado/Ainsley Radell (Cal) def. Genevieve Bane/Cameron Martinez (SMC) 21-10, 21-15
(5) Brooke Buchner/Alex Young-Gomez (Cal) def. Angie Bour/Hannah Glick (SMC) 21-11, 21-6
(3) Gia Fisher/Maya Gessner (Cal) def. Karmin Brown/Sadie Shipman (SMC) 22-20, 21-10
(1) Hawley Harrer/Daniella Kensinger (SMC) def. Sierra Caffo/Liz Waters-Leiga (Cal) 21-17, 26-24
 
UP NEXT
The regular season closes on Saturday in Moraga as the Gaels host their senior day against Sierra College. First serve is scheduled for 1:00 pm, with Senior Day festivities for Hawley Harrer and Karmin Brown taking place prior. After the match, the Gaels will prepare for the WCC Championships in Santa Monica, which take place on April 27-28.