MORAGA, Calif. — After a promising showing in Hawaii that saw the Gaels score three teams receiving national attention, the Saint Mary's Gaels (7-6) now return to the Bay Area to take on the likes of RV Texas A&M - Corpus Christi (6-5), Utah (9-3) and #5 Stanford (9-5) in an event hosted by the Cardinal this upcoming Friday and Saturday, March 14 and 15.
The Gaels spent last week on the sunny shores of Waikiki, taking part in the Heineken Queen's Cup. Saint Mary's opened up the weekend 2-0, including their first WCC win of the year, a 3-2 thriller over the rival Dons of San Francisco. Day two featured a pair of matchups against ranked foes #15 Hawaii and #17 Washington. Against the Rainbow Wahine, the Gaels battled valiantly, falling by a narrow 3-2 margin, with signature wins by the five pair of Delaney Nicholls and Grace Travis, and the three pair of Sedona Sherman and Angelina Bour. The Gaels were able to take one point against the Huskies, courtesy of their ones, Allie Cataldo and Hannah Couch. The tournament ended with a down to the wire matchup against RV Tulane. The Gaels fell into an early 2-0 hole, but wins from Cataldo/Couch and a new four pairing of Grace Travis and Genevieve Bane knotted things up at two apiece. Sherman/Bour battled tooth and nail at the threes, forcing a decisive third set that ultimately went the way of the Green Wave, 15-13, but the Gaels again showed that they could stick around with some of the best teams in the country.
The Islanders of Texas A&M - Corpus Christi have received votes in the latest AVCA Poll, currently sitting at 6-5, with three of their five losses coming at the hands of nationally ranked foes. Most recently at the Sun Devil Classic in Tempe, TAMCC fell to sixth ranked Cal Poly and tenth ranked Arizona State before finishing out the event with a 3-2 victory over Coastal Carolina. Madison Marrow and Tess Spaansen make up a one pairing for the Islanders that have gone 8-3 from that spot, and should be a tough battle for the Gaels one pairing of Cataldo and Couch, who sit at 10-3 for the season. This will be the first all-time meeting between these two squads.
The Gaels will take on Utah both in the Friday finale and Saturday starter. The Utes sit at 9-3 with losses to 12th ranked Florida Atlantic and 17th ranked Florida International, as well as CSUN, their only non-ranked loss this season. That loss to the Matadors came last weekend in Northridge, as the Utes went 3-1 in a four game weekend against CSUN and Santa Clara. Led by the ones pairing of Quincy Stephens and Katie McAlister who have combined to go 9-3, the Utes look to be a formidable foe as well this weekend, despite not receiving any attention in the AVCA coaches poll. The Gaels are 3-1 all-time vs Utah, but lost a narrow 3-2 decision last year in a neutral site game in San Jose.
The final opponent this weekend for the Gaels will be the fifth ranked Stanford Cardinal, a team that the Gaels fell to 5-0 two weeks ago at the Battle for the Bay. The Cardinal are off to a 9-5 start only losing to teams ranked within the AVCA top-10. Last week at the MPSF Mid-Season Rumble, Stanford went 2-2 with wins over Oregon and ninth ranked Cal, but fell to top ranked UCLA and third ranked USC. The three pair of Kelly Belardi and Avrey Jackson have been the most solid pairing on the young season for the Cardinal, going a combined 9-2. Belardi is a veteran of this program, with 83 matches under her belt, while Jackson is a highly touted true freshman out of Dallas. Stanford holds a 16-8 record all-time vs the Gaels, including 12 straight wins. The match against the Cardinal will be streamed on Big10+, with first serve set for 2 PM on Saturday.
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