Courtesy: Cal Poly Athletics
HONOLULU — Cal Poly beach volleyball’s No. 1 pairing of sophomore Torrey Van Winden and freshman Tiadora Miric won four matches in a row Sunday to win the Big West’s first ever Pairs Tournament at Queen’s Beach.
The duo was the No. 2 seed (out of 16) in the tournament. They took down pairs from CSU Bakersfield, Hawai’i and Long Beach State to take home the trophy.
They began the tournament by beating CSU Bakersfield’s Desiree Sukhov and Sarah Garrow 21-17, 21-12 to advance to the quarterfinals. They then beat the Hawai’i’s Carly Kan and Laurel Weaver in three sets 14-21, 21-14, 15-11 to move on to the semifinals.
In the semifinals, the duo squared off against the SandBows’ Hannah Zalopany and Morgan Martin. They were able to get the win in straight sets 21-16, 22-20 to move them on to the championship match.
In the championship they would face a familiar opponent, Long Beach State’s No. 1 pair of Nele Barber and Sasha Karelov. Miric and Van Winden had already played them twice over the weekend in the Big West Team Tournament, with the 49ers winning both matches.
Barber and Karelov took the first set 21-17 and held a 12-9 lead at one point in the second set. However, Miric and Van Winden would rally back to win the second set 21-18 to force a deciding third set. The Mustangs would take a 8-5 to force a Long Beach State timeout and they would not look back from there, winning 15-9 to win the championship.
Cal Poly’s other two pairs in the tournament also fared well. Senior Taylor Nelson and junior Adlee Van Winden made it all the way to the semifinals after beating pairs from CSUN and Hawai’i. Sophomore Emily Sonny and junior Samantha Manley beat Hawai’i’s Amy Ozee and Ari Homayun to make it to the quarterfinals before falling to the 49ers’ Barber and Karelov.
The Mustangs’ season now officially comes to an end after it was announced they were not selected for the NCAA Tournament. They finish the season 27-7, the best record in program history and had their highest ranking in program history at No. 4.
Round of 16
#1 Emily Maglio/Ka’iwi Schucht (Hawai’i) def. #16 Kennedy Kurtz/Sarah Davis (Sacramento State) 21-14, 21-14
#9 Adlee Van Winden/Taylor Nelson (Cal Poly) def. #8 Aeryn Owens/Katie Sato (CSUN) 21-17, 24-22
#2 Torrey Van Winden/Tiadora Miric (Cal Poly) def. #15 Desiree Sukhov/Sarah Garrow (CSU Bakersfield) 21-17, 21-12
#7 Laurel Weaver/Carly Kan (Hawai’i) def. #10 Hailey Harward/Claire Newlander (Long Beach State) 21-13, 21-15
#3 Morgan Martin/Hannah Zalopany (Hawai’i) def. #14 Kristy Markle/Nickeisha Williams (CSUN) 20-22, 21-14, 15-6
#6 Emma Kirst/Rachel Nieto (Long Beach State) def. #11 Sydney Haynes/Emily Hansen (CSU Bakersfield) 21-12, 21-14
#4 Nele Barber/Sasha Karelov (Long Beach State) def. #13 Mikaela Nocetti/Lana Brown (Sacramento State) 21-12, 21-6
#5 Emily Sonny/Jessica Manley (Cal Poly) def. #12 Amy Ozee/Ari Homayun (Hawai’i) 17-21, 21-11, 15-11
Quarterfinals
#9 Adlee Van Winden/Taylor Nelson (Cal Poly) def. #1 Emily Maglio/Ka’iwi Schucht (Hawai’i) 23-21, 22-20
#2 Torrey Van Winden/Tiadora Miric (Cal Poly) def. #7 Carly Kan/Laurel Weaver (Hawai’i) 14-21, 21-14, 15-11
#4 Nele Barber/Sasha Karelov (Long Beach State) def. #5 Emily Sonny/Jessica Manley (Cal Poly) 21-13, 21-13
#3 Morgan Martin/Hannah Zalopany (Hawai’i) def. #6 Emma Kirst/Rachel Nieto (Long Beach State) 21-23, 21-15, 15-12
Semifinals
#4 Nele Barber/Sasha Karelov (Long Beach State) def. #9 Adlee Van Winden/Taylor Nelson (Cal Poly) 21-13, 21-9
#2 Torrey Van Winden/Tiadora Miric (Cal Poly) def. #3 Hannah Zalopany/Morgan Martin (Hawai’i) 21-16, 22-20
Finals
#2 Tiadora Miric/Torrey Van Winden (Cal Poly) def. #4 Nele Barber/Sasha Karelov (Long Beach State) 17-21, 21-18, 15-9
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