March 12, 2023
Warriors in Top Form, Atop the Cal Pac
By Francisco Claudio
Westcliff women's beach volleyball officially started their conference matches this week and it couldn't have gone better as they remain the last undefeated team in the conference winning (4-1, 5-0, 5-0).
The Warriors played three opponents in two days: Park-Gilbert, Saint Katherine, and Benedictine Mesa.
The Warriors were looking forward to this slate of games as they had dropped their last couple.
Head Coach Tim Maruyama shared his thoughts on going into this weekend: "After dropping a few matches last week to some talented D1 and D2 schools we took off to Arizona to play our first conference jamboree. We aimed to focus on our first ball side and get in and out of each match as fast as possible to save our legs and energy in the deep sand and humid AZ weather."
The competition started on Friday as Westcliff took on Park-Gilbert first coming out on top 4-1.
The pair of Fiona Moesching/ Marine Kinna set the tone taking it in straight sets 21-12, 21-14.
Maddie Shepston and Sabrina Galassi followed that with a very convincing performance in straight sets 21-10, 21-13.
The pairs of Gianna Guinasso/ Mia Scheepens and Brooke Beresford/Sam Washmuth took the long route as they needed a third set but won them easily 15-7 and 15-8.
The next day the Warriors had an early encounter with Saint Katherine and the good vibes carried over as they swept 5-0.
Four out of the five pairs quickly took care of business winning in straight sets.
The pair of Sabrina Galassi and Maddie Shepston wanted a little more time on the court but took care of business as well, winning 21-19, 15-21, 15-8.
A little later on the same day, the Warriors got ready to take on Benedictine Mesa and quickly called it a day as they took out the brooms, 5-0.
It was an overpowering display of what this beach volleyball program is capable of this season.
Pair 1: Kinna Marine/Fiona Moesching (WU) Def. Kylie Bartel/Annabelle Somoza (BENU) 2-0 (21-13, 21-12)
Pair 2: Gianna Guinasso/Mia Sharpens (WU) Def. Kahiau Ka'alele/Anna Brytkowska (BENU) 2-0 (21-9, 21-11)
Pair 3: Sabrina Galassi/Maddie Shepston (WU) Def. Keelan Memory/Tina Sanchez (BENU) 2-0 (21-5, 21-4)
Pair 4: Sabrina Galassi/Maddie Shepston (WU) Def. Danyell Lopez/Amanda Lopez (BENU) 2-0 (21-7, 21-12)
Pair: Faith Webb/Chloe Johnson (WU) Def. Courtney Ely/Amanda Koltz (BENU) 2-0 (21-7, 21-10)
Pair 3: Sabrina Galassi/Maddie Shepston (WU) Def. Keelan Memory/Tina Sanchez (BENU) 2-0 (21-5, 21-4)
Pair 4: Sabrina Galassi/Maddie Shepston (WU) Def. Danyell Lopez/Amanda Lopez (BENU) 2-0 (21-7, 21-12)
Pair: Faith Webb/Chloe Johnson (WU) Def. Courtney Ely/Amanda Koltz (BENU) 2-0 (21-7, 21-10)
"The girls did an awesome job of doing that all weekend with several impressive scores and winning all three duels," said Maruyama. "As a program, we dedicated the month of March to consistency and transparency.
"We are dialing up and connecting with our partners and can't wait to play these teams again."
The Warriors will have a couple of days off from competition before they start a four-game home stand.
"We have a big training block coming up as we take off some time to fine-tune our skills before we compete again," said Maruyama. "Our goal is to continue our pursuit of mastering our first ball side out game.
"We will really emphasize attacking "out of system", off the net, and outside our body so that we can become more lethal offensively. We will also work on our defensive systems to ensure we have a well-rounded strategy going into the Ouaz match."
Westcliff will kick off the homestand against OUAZ on Thursday, March 23.
First serve will be at 2:00 PM.