GULF SHORES, Ala. — Twin sisters Nicole and Audrey North won for the second consecutive year in the deciding match Sunday as top-ranked USC defeated second-place UCLA 3-0 to clinch the Beach Volleyball Championship 4. Achieved consecutive victories.
It was the first championship since the NCAA recognized the sport in 2016 with all five games going into the third game.
USC (37-5) has won six of eight championships, the last four under head coach Dane Blanton. The other two titles were won by UCLA (35-7) in 2018 and '19.
USC took a 2-0 lead Sunday behind 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 coached USC to its first two titles, a 3-0 win over Florida State in 2016 and a 3-2 win over Pepperdine the following season.
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.