WAIKIKI, Hawaii — The Gaels (7-6) run at the Heineken Queen's Cup came to an end on Saturday with a narrow 3-2 loss to RV Tulane (10-4). Saint Mary's and Tulane split the first four points, bringing things down to three pairs from either side to decide the match outcome. The threes point mimicked the entire match, going to a third set that ended in a narrow 15-13 margin in favor of the Green Wave to secure the victory. While the Gaels went just 2-3 at the event as a team, they were able to take points against three of the top teams in the country, a positive sign for things to come as the season wears on. 

The Gaels fell in an early 2-0 hole with straight set victories at the twos and fives. Coach Janice Harrer tinkered with her lineup a bit, as Delaney Nicholls paired with Clarissa Klein at the fives for Klein's season debut, while Grace Travis paired with Genevieve Bane at the fours. Travis and Bane earned the first point of the day for the Gaels with a come from behind three set thriller, winning the decisive set 17-15. Following suite, Allie Cataldo and Hannah Couch also came from behind at the ones to earn their tenth victory of the season. This left things up to the Gaels three pairing of Angelina Bour and Sedona Sherman to try and secure the victory. Bour and Sherman took the first set, but dropped set two, and were narrowly outlasted in the decisive final set 15-13. 

Cataldo and Couch finished off a 4-1 weekend to move to 10-3 at the ones this season. Delaney Nicholls and Grace Travis went 3-1 while playing together at the fives, while Travis added a fourth win playing with Genevieve Bane at the fours today. Hannah Couch was named the tournament's best defender. 

The Gaels will next head to Stanford to take on the likes of the host Cardinal, Texas A&M - Corpus Christi and Utah twice next weekend. 

#GaelsRise