Postseason play begins for Eagles at SAC Beach Challenge
GREENEVILLE, Tenn. - After securing the most single season wins in program history, the Carson-Newman beach volleyball team heads to Tusculum for the SAC Beach Challenge event.
GREENEVILLE, Tenn. - After securing the most single season wins in program history, the Carson-Newman beach volleyball team heads to Tusculum for the SAC Beach Challenge event.
Carson-Newman will face off against Catawba and Lincoln Memorial on Friday, Apr. 8 at 1:00 PM and 5:00 PM, before taking on host Tusculum on Saturday, Apr. 9 at 1:00 PM. The winner of the round-robin tournament will be crowed the SAC Beach Challenge champion.
The Eagles enter the tournament with a 12-8 record after picking up a pair of wins over Saint Andrews. Carson-Newman swept the Knights 5-0 in both matches, with each game lasting just two sets. The closest set win came in the second match when Mia Toribio and Jenny Ille won the first set at no. two 21-17.
With a pair of wins, Lindsey Geurin, Taylor Keeran, and Morgan Siwiec tied the program record for most wins in a single season. Keeran and Geurin are both 13-6 this season as a pair, while Siwiec is 13-7, playing primarily with Julia Wheeler this year.
This season, Carson-Newman is 5-1 against SAC programs. The Eagles swept Lincoln Memorial in their season opener 4-1 and 5-0 on Feb. 19. The orange and blue trail the all-time series to the Splitters 7-10, but have won three straight and four of the last five meetings. At the first SAC Beach Challenge in 2021, C-N swept the Railsplitters 5-0 in Salisbury.
The Railsplitters have the same record as Carson-Newman, sitting at 12-8 this season. LMU has dropped two in a row to Erskine and Tusculum after winning eleven straight matches. Of those eleven wins, ten were over NAIA programs and one was over JUCO program Spartanburg Methodist. The Splitters are 0-5 this season against SAC teams.
The Eagles and Catawba Indians have met four times this season, with Carson-Newman winning all four meetings. The Eagles won the first three matches 4-1 before sweeping the Indians in Mossy Creek 5-0 on Mar. 19.
Catawba is just 3-12-1 this season, but did earn a split with a 3-2 win over Division-I program Liberty in their last match on Apr. 5. The Indians other two wins were over NAIA teams Huntingdon and St. Andrews.
Tusculum swept Carson-Newman 5-0 in their only meeting this season. The Pioneers have won three straight over the Eagles, including wins at the 2021 SAC Beach Challenge and the 2021 AVCA Small College Championships.
The Pioneers enter the weekend with a 15-9 record with four straight wins. Of Tusculum's 15 wins, six are over Division-II programs and a pair of wins over Division-I programs Eastern Kentucky and Jacksonville State, the same two Division-I teams Carson-Newman has defeated this season.
Tusculum went a perfect 3-0 at the 2021 SAC Beach Challenge event. The Pioneers are also 6-1 at home this season at the new Pioneer Beach Courts.
The first match of the tournament begins on Friday, Apr.8 at 1:00 PM against Catawba. The tournament schedule is subject to change due to the anticipated wet weather in the area this weekend. Fans can follow along with updates via Twitter at @cn_eagles.
