Beach Volleyball Topples No. 3 Hawaii, Splits Day One of East Meets West Challenge

The loss to Pepperdine snapped the team’s eight-match win streak, but FSU’s 4-1 win over Hawaii helped the team improve to a 9-1 season record. The Seminoles still have not given up more than one point in any win so far this season.

While a tried and true lineup helped the Seminoles compete with the top-ranked Waves, a shakeup in the pairings proved to be effective in the team’s win over Hawaii. Sophomore Molly McBain and freshman Madison Fitzpatrick remain the team’s only undefeated pairing with a 6-0 record at the No. 5 position.

The East Meets West Challenge continues tomorrow in Manhattan Beach, where the Seminoles will face No. 4 UCLA and No. 2 USC. FSU has a combined 9-9 record against the two teams.

Match #1: No. 1 Pepperdine

1. Madalyn Roh/Brook Bauer (PEPP) def. Tory Paranagua/Macy Jerger (FSU), 25-23, 21-18
2. Corinne Quiggle/Deahna Kraft (PEPP) def. Vanessa Freire/Brooke Kuhlman (FSU), 21-15, 21-15
3. Heidi Dyer/Gigi Hernandez (PEPP) def. Sara Putt/Francesca Goncalves (FSU), 21-15, 18-21, 19-17
4. Skylar Caputo/Alexis Filippone (PEPP) def. Hailey Luke/Katie Horton (FSU), 25-23, 22-20
5. Molly McBain/Madison Fitzpatrick (FSU) def. Maddie Dilfer/Jordan Ferrari (PEPP), 21-14, 21-16

Order of finish: 2, 5, 4, 1*, 5

The Seminoles employed a familiar lineup against the Waves in the first match of the East Meets West Challenge, but it was no match for Pepperdine as the top-ranked team took the first set on four courts.

As the Waves earned a point with a win at No. 2, Molly McBain and Madison Fitzpatrick kept up their untarnished record with a win at No. 5 to tie up the team score. While the two teams saw a number of highly contested sets at a number of different positions, the Waves were able to push through it and hand FSU its first loss of the season.

Match #2: No. 3 Hawaii

1. Tory Paranagua/Macy Jerger (FSU) def. Laurel Weaver/Carly Kan (UH), 26-24, 21-19
2. Emily Maglio/Ka’iwi Schucht (UH) def. Vanessa Freire/Sara Putt (FSU), 22-20, 21-13
3. Brooke Kuhlman/Francesca Goncalves (FSU) def. Lea Monkhouse/Morgan Martin (UH), 22-20, 21-16
4. Hailey Luke/Katie Horton (FSU) def. Amy Ozee/Ari Homayun (UH), 21-13, 17-21, 18-16
5. Molly McBain/Madison Fitzpatrick (FSU) def. Hannah Zalopany/Paige Dreeuws (UH), 21-15, 21-18

Order of finish: 2, 5, 3, 1*, 4

A new lineup for the Seminoles helped them start off on top in their second match of the day, taking all but one of the first sets. While the Rainbow Wahine came up with a quick win at the No. 2 position for a 1-0 lead, the Seminoles took the lead back with a pair of wins from McBain/Fitzpatrick and Kuhlman/Goncalves.

It was the top-seeded Paranagua/Jerger that clinched the match for the Seminoles for the second time this season, and Luke/Horton finished it off with the fourth team point for FSU at the No. 4 position.

FSU’s Schedule of Events – East Meets West Challenge

Saturday, March 10

12:30 ET (9:30 a.m. PST) – No. 1 Pepperdine def. No. 5 Florida State, 4-1
4:30 ET (1:30 PST) – No. 5 Florida State def. No. 3 Hawaii, 4-1

Sunday, March 11

2:00 ET (11 a.m. PST) – No. 5 Florida State vs. No. 4 UCLA
7:00 ET (4:00 PST) – No. 5 Florida State vs. No. 2 USC

Notes

• FSU’s season record improves to 9-1.
• FSU’s all-time record improves to 135-28 (.828).
• Head coach Brooke Niles’ record improves to 70-13.
• FSU’s record against Pepperdine moves to 1-8, while its record over Hawaii improves to 6-4.
• Katie Horton’s 27-10 record at the No. 4 position holds the record for the most wins by a Seminole at that position.
• Paranagua/Jerger clinched the match for the Seminoles for the second time this season.
• The pairing of Molly McBain/Madison Fitzpatrick is the only team for the Seminoles that has gone undefeated so far with a 6-0 record.
• FSU’s 8-0 start was the second best the program has ever seen, behind a 14-0 start in 2016.

Records to Watch

• Tory Paranagua
  • Her 80 career dual match wins ranks second in program history. Jace Pardon holds the record with 85 career dual match wins.
  • Her 92 career overall wins ranks seventh all-time. She only needs one more wins to tie Sarah Wickstrom’s 93 career overall wins.
  • Her 14 wins at the No. 1 position is tied for sixth all-time. Four more wins passes teammate Brooke Kuhlman’s 17 wins at the top position.
• Vanessa Freire
  • Her 82 career overall wins ranks ninth all-time. She needs four more to tie Stephanie Pellitteri’s 86 wins.
  • Her 78 career dual match wins ranks third in program history, right behind Paranagua’s 79 wins.
  • Her 34 wins in the No. 2 position ranks third all-time, behind Paranagua’s 42 wins in the position.
• Paranagua/Jerger
  • The pair’s career 27-8 record ranks 10^th in program history. One more win ties them for 9^th place, two wins gives them a tie for 8^th.

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