While many collegiate beach awards honor just Court 1 pairs, VolleyMob wanted to recognize the top performances on all five courts. With our first, second and third team All-America honors, we will do just that, honoring the top three teams from courts 1 through 5.
There were many breakout performers in 2018, records broken and more. In making our choices, we considered overall record, wins vs. ranked opponents and all other superlatives.
Without further adieu, we introduce the 2018 VolleyMob Beach All-American Pairs.
First Team
Court 1: Megan McNamara/Nicole McNamara, UCLA
- Set a UCLA record for wins in a season, going 35-7 leading the Bruins to the NCAA title
- Went 30-7 against ranked teams
- Even in losses, the pair was competitive, with all seven going to tiebreak
- Nicole was named Pac-12 Player of the Year, while the tandem was named Pac-12 Pair of the Year, first team All-Pac 12 and to the NCAA All-Tournament team on Court 1
Court 2: Lily Justine/Sarah Sponcil, UCLA
- Posted 33-8 record, all on Court 2, including a 6-1 postseason record, including a 3-1 effort at the NCAA Championships
- Went 28-8 against ranked teams, including a 16-1 stretch to end the year
- Named first team All-Pac-12 and to the Pac-12 all-tournament team
Court 3: Carly Kan/Laurel Weaver, Hawaii
- Notched a 32-11 overall record, including 21-1 on Court 3
- Went 10-0 against ranked opponents on Court 3
- Ended the season on a 13 match win streak, including a 4-0 mark at the NCAA Championships
- Named to All-Big West second team and to the NCAA All-Tournament team
Court 4: Skylar Caputo/Alexis Filippone, Pepperdine
- Notched a 27-3 record, all on Court 4
- Went 23-3 against ranked opponents
- 27 dual wins rank second in Pepperdine season history
- NCAA All-Tournament team on Court 4
- Filippone earned WCC All-Freshman team honors
Court 5: Izzy Carey/Megan Muret, UCLA
- Notched a 34-8 record, including 30-4 on Court 5
- Posted a 28-4 mark against ranked foes on Court 5, 29-8 overall
- Set school record with 28 consecutive dual wins, including 23 against ranked teams
- Named to NCAA Tournament team on Court 5
Second Team
Court 1: Abril Bustamante/Tina Graudina, USC
- Posted a 32-2 record, all on Court 1
- Went 25-2 against ranked opponents
- Only two losses came to top five opponents: Maglio/Schucht (Hawaii) on March 18 and Megan McNamara/Nicole McNamara (UCLA) on April 28
- Graudina was tabbed as Pac-12 Freshman of the Year, while the pair earned All-Pac-12 and Pac-12 Championship all-tournament team honors
Court 2: Madalyn Roh/Brook Bauer, Pepperdine
- Posted a 23-7 on the year, including a 14-1 effort on Court 2
- Went 11-1 against ranked foes on Court 2
- Bauer was tabbed as WCC Freshman of the Year, while the pair ended first team All-WCC honors
Court 3: Heidi Dyer/Gigi Hernandez, Pepperdine
- Posted a 22-8 record, all on Court 3
- Went 18-8 vs. ranked opponents
- Dyer earned All-WCC first team honors, while Hernandez garnered second team accolades
Court 4: Ari Homayun/Amy Ozee, Hawaii
- Posted a 35-7 mark on Court 4
- Went 17-7 against ranked opponents
- Set Hawaii season record with 35 dual match victories
- Earned All-Big West honorable mention honors
Court 5: Grace Campbell/Maddie Micheletti, Cal
- Notched a 27-3 record, all on Court 5
- Went 11-3 against ranked opponents, with all three losses coming against USC, who was ranked in the Top 5
- Pac-12 Pair of the Week, April 24
- Dropped just nine sets all season
Third Team
Court 1: Ka’iwi Schucht/Emily Maglio, Hawaii
- Posted 36-7 mark, including a 26-3 effort on Court 1
- Went 17-6 vs. ranked opponents
- Big West Pair of the Year
- Set single-season school record with 35 dual match wins
- Won school record 25 consecutive dual matches
Court 2: Hailey Luke/Katie Horton, Florida State
- Put together a 38-5 record, including a 19-1 mark on Court 2
- Earned 19 victories against ranked foes, including a 13-1 mark on Court 2
- Notched a 22-match win streak
- Went 2-1 at the NCAA Championships
Court 3: Zana Muno/Savvy Simo, UCLA
- Put together a 25-5 record, including a 22-4 effort on Court 3
- Went 23-5 vs. ranked teams, 18-4 on Court 3
- Notched a 17-dual win streak
- Simo was named to the Pac-12 all-tournament team with a different partner (Madi Yeomans) and earned second team All-Pac-12 honors
Court 4: Mac May/Elise Zappia, UCLA
- Tallied a 22-6 overall record, 21-6 on Court 4, including a 4-0 mark at the Pac-12 Championship
- Went 18-6 against ranked opponents
- Put together 16 dual win streak
- May was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman team
Court 5: Paige Dreeuws/Hannah Zalopany, Hawaii
- Registered a 26-8 mark, all on Court 5
- Went 13-8 vs. ranked opponents
- Won 18 of last 19 matches heading into the NCAA Tournament
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