GULF SHORES, Alabama: Top-ranked Southern California defeated No. 2 UCLA 3-0 on Sunday for the beach volleyball championship as twin sisters Nicole and Audrey North won for the second straight year in the deciding match. Achieved 4 consecutive victories.
It was the first championship since the NCAA recognized the sport in 2016 with all five games going all the way to Game 3.
USC (37-5) has won six of eight championships, the last four under head coach Dane Blanton. UCLA (35-7) won two other titles in 2018-19.
USC opened up a 2-0 lead over the No. 2 and No. 4 pair.
The duo of Madison White and Maddie Chriss fell to UCLA's Peri Brennan and Devon Newberry 14-21 in the first game, but won the next two games 21-19 and 15-13. I got it.
The Trojans' top four, Grace Seitz and freshman Ashley Pater, lost 24-26 in the opening round to the Bruins' Jaden Whitmarsh and Tessa Van Winkle. Seitz and Pater trailed 8-4 in the second game, but rallied to win 25-23 and dominated the third game, 15-8. Seitz and Pater won their final five games and finished 12-1 as a pair this season.
The North sisters started the game by defeating UCLA's three-man Jesse Smith and Kenzie Brower, 22-20. Smith and Brower each won 21-15, tying the score at one game. The score was tied at 9-9 on the third run, but Nicole Nulls' ace and block at the net gave them a 15-11 victory and the 2024 title.
University of Southern California senior Megan Craft, three-time AVCA first-team All-American and two-time first-teamer Delaney Maple will face the Bruins' Maggie Boyd and Lexi Denaburg in the opener. won 21-16. In the second game, Boyd and Denaburg led by four points before the Trojans tied it 18-17. UCLA scored the final three points, capped by an ace by Boyd, and forced a third game. In the final game, Kraft and Maple led 8-4, but the result was not up for debate.
UCLA's No. 5 pair, Natalie Mischkowski and Ensley Alden, opened the match with a 21-17 win over USC's Mayvin Thomas and Madison Gellner. The Trojans won 23-21, forcing a decisive game. USC was up 4-2 when the game was called.
USC defeated UCLA 3-2 in last season's championship match.
USC started its winning streak with a 3-1 win over UCLA on its way to the 2021 title. The Trojans defeated Florida State 3-1. The event was not held in 2020 due to the influence of the new coronavirus infection.
Coach Anna Collier led USC to its first two titles. In 2016, she beat Florida State 3-0, and the following season she beat Pepperdine 3-2.
The Trojans advanced to the final this season with a 3-0 victory over No. 5 Cal Poly in the semifinals. The Bruins advanced to the title game with a 3-1 victory over No. 11 LSU.
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AP College Sports: https://apnews.com/hub/college-sports
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – Associated Press)
First published: May 6, 2024, 00:00 IST