No. 12 Mustangs Win Two of Three at First Day of Big West Challenge

Friday, March 25

Long Beach, CA

9:30 A.M.

CSUN

Photo by: Owen Main | Cal Poly Athletics

No. 12 Mustangs Win Two of Three at First Day of Big West Challenge

3/25/2022 4:07:00 PM | Beach Volleyball

LONG BEACH, Calif. — The No. 12 Cal Poly beach volleyball team was victorious in two of its three matches Friday at the first day of competition at the Big West Challenge at Rosie's Dog Beach in Long Beach. The No. 12 Mustangs (12-9) swept both CSUN and Sacramento State by scores of 5-0 before falling to No. 15 Long Beach State in the day's finale, 5-0 Cal Poly got its day off to a strong start against the Matadors. The No. 1 pair of freshman Ella Connor and redshirt senior Tia Miric, this week's Big West Pairs Team of the Week, started the match off with a 21-15, 21-14 win. The No. 2 duo of freshman Piper Ferch and redshirt junior Jayelin Lombard put the Mustangs ahead 2-0 after getting a 21-18 21-15 win. That was followed up by a first-time pairing at the No. 3 spot of freshman Peyton Dueck and sophomore Rachel Rahtz getting a 21-12, 21-19 win. At the No. 5 spot, redshirt juniors Erika Foreman and Eleonore Johansen moved to 2-0 together this year after a 21-13, 21-16 victory. The 5-0 dual win was completed after the No. 4 pair of redshirt sophomore Josie Ulrich and sophomore Piper Naess won their match 21-8, 21-19. The victory marked the eighth win in a row over CSUN and moved Cal Poly to 8-2 all-time against the Matadors. -------------- A few hours later, Cal Poly was back at Rosie's Dog Beach to take on Sacramento State. The Mustangs started the match ahead 1-0 after the Hornets were unable to fill a pair at the No. 5 spot and had to forfeit the point. Once the match got going, it was once again Miric and Connor winning first after a 21-13, 21-12 win at the No. 1 spot. The No. 3 pair of Naess and Rahtz made it 2-0 after they won their first match of the season together in dominating fashion, 21-9, 21-7. Ferch and Lombard then won their match at the No. 2 spot, 21-14, 21-15 to officially clinch the dual for Cal Poly. At the No. 4 spot, Strah and Johansen completed the sweep after winning their match 21-18, 21-19. --------------- Right after the Sacramento State match ended, Cal Poly was right back on the sand to face No. 15 Long Beach State. It marked the second time this season facing the Beach, with the Mustangs winning the first matchup, 3-2. Long Beach's No. 2 pair of Sydney Stevens and Katie Kennedy beat Ferch and Lombard 21-13, 21-16 to start the match. At the No. 1 spot, LBSU's Skyler Germann and Alice Pratesi defeated Miric and Connor 26-24, 21-14. The Beach's No. 3 pair of Jillian Rodriguez and Emily Mattoon then beat Dueck and graduate Addison Hermstad in three sets, 12-21, 21-16, 15-12 to clinch the win. At the No. 4 spot, Nicci Reinking and Claire Newlander beat Strah and Naess 21-18, 21-16. And at the No. 5 spot, Sophie Major and Christine DeRoos beat Ulrich and redshirt junior Vanessa Roscoe in three sets, 21-14, 17-21, 15-11. Cal Poly will finish up the Big West Challenge with three more matches Saturday. At 9:30 a.m., they will face CSU Bakersfield followed by UC Davis at 12 p.m. and No. 9 Hawai'i at 2:30 p.m.