Huskers Claim Sand Volleyball Crown

[huskervbfan]

San Diego, Calif., –- Whether on the court or in the sand, Nebraska volleyball proved to have the queens of the sport, as the Husker duo of Jordan Larson and Sarah Pavan teamed to win the Powerade Collegiate Beach Volleyball Championships Sunday afternoon.

Pavan and Larson led Nebraska to the event title, as they rallied for a three-game win over the Stanford team of Cynthia Barboza and Bryn Kehoe, prevailing 19-21, 23-21 and 18-16. Nebraska also defeated Stanford to win the NCAA volleyball team title last December in Omaha.

Pavan and Larson, who were playing their fifth match of the day, were down 1-0 to the Cardinal in the title match and trailed 19-17 in game two before rallying to tie the match and send it to a decisive third game. In the finale (first team to 15), the teams traded points throughout the final game and Stanford had match point at 14-13 before a Barboza service error tied the match. The teams continued to battle until the Huskers broke a 16-all deadlock with two points to win the hour-long match.

“It was a back-and-forth match all afternoon,” Assistant Coach Lizzy Stemke said. “We were able to make the defensive plays we needed to late to win the match.”

Pavan said that while the Huskers were challenged with an unfamiliar surface in a different setting, the key was to keep errors to a minimum.

“The game was just up and down,” Pavan said. “We would get a sting of points, and then they go on a run. It came down to who made errors and when. There were obviously a few things we struggled with but we held our own. Jordan and I are very competitive and we just went out there to win.”

The Huskers advanced to the finals with a 23-21 and 21-16 victory over the seventh-seeded San Diego pair of Andrea Csaszi and Jaimarie Sutherland. Barboza and Kehoe lifted the Cardinal to the championship match with a 21-16, 21-12 win over the eighth-seeded Cal Poly team of Kylie Atherstone and Chelsea Hayes.

Both Nebraska and Stanford earned a spot in the semi-finals after being upset in pool play to finish second in both groups behind the Cal Poly and San Diego, respectively. Cal Poly, Nebraska and Texas tied with 2-1 records in Pool A, but the Mustangs won the group with a 2.5 set ratio with the Cornhuskers second (1.67) and the Longhorns third (1.33).

After Cal Poly lost to Nebraska 15-7, 16-18 and 15-13, the Mustangs posted wins over Minnesota (15-13 and 15-10) and Texas (27-25 and 15-13). After Texas defeated Nebraska 15-13, 16-18 and 23-21, the Cornhuskers rebounded to advance to the semi-finals with a 15-11 and 15-11 victory over Minnesota.

San Diego, which upset Stanford 15-11 and 15-12 in an opening pool play match, won its group with a 3-0 record after downing Penn State (16-14 and 15-9) and Florida (15-11 and 15-13). Stanford posted wins over Florida (15-11 and 15-10) and Penn State (15-11 and 15-13) to gain the second spot from Pool B.

Powerade Collegiate Beach Volleyball - CSTV Broadcast Schedule

Sunday, May 6 - 4:30 p. m., Collegiate Nationals Preview Show

Saturday, May 12 - 8 p.m., Collegiate Nationals - Premier of Beach Volleyball

Friday, May 18 - 8 p.m., Collegiate Nationals - Premier of Beach Volleyball Semifinal No. 1

Saturday, May 19 - 8 p.m., Collegiate Nationals - Premier of Beach Volleyball Semifinal No. 2

Sunday, May 20 - 8 p.m., Collegiate Nationals - Premier of finals for Beach Volleyball

[Deleted]

I'm really surprised Nebraska was able to win this. The indoor sand court must help, because you would have thought it would have been won by a team with more experience. Maybe there wasn't one?

[D. B. Cooper]

Or maybe better is just that...better.

[huskervbfan]

There are sand courts all over Nebraska. Every small town has a park or two with courts and there are MANY places to play sand volleyball in larger communities. It is not like people outside of California have never played the game. We have grown up playing sand VB. Just because it is not called beach volleyball does not make it that much different. It has also been stated that Pavan played sand VB up in Canada as well.

It is also worth pointing out that Cook came from San Diego and was a very good beach player himself. I'm sure he was able to give a few pointers to the players.

Plus as was pointed out, having an indoor facility so they can play sand VB no matter what the conditions outside has to help.

[beachman]

You think that Misty and Keri should just "throw in the towel right now"?

[huskervbfan]

Nah, Larson doesn't graduate for another couple of years

[chada]

The last two years at Spikes in Lincoln (12 outdoor volleyball courts), I've seen Jordan Larson out there playing two on two in the sand. She definitely can move in the sand... now never seen Sarah out there.

Only thing we got against us in Nebraska is the freakish cold we can get in April when we are trying to get the sand volleyball season going... oh that and the wind.

huskervbfan said:

There are sand courts all over Nebraska. Every small town has a park or two with courts and there are MANY places to play sand volleyball in larger communities. It is not like people outside of California have never played the game. We have grown up playing sand VB. Just because it is not called beach volleyball does not make it that much different. It has also been stated that Pavan played sand VB up in Canada as well.

It is also worth pointing out that Cook came from San Diego and was a very good beach player himself. I'm sure he was able to give a few pointers to the players.

Plus as was pointed out, having an indoor facility so they can play sand VB no matter what the conditions outside has to help.

[Gorf]

beachman said:

You think that Misty and Keri should just "throw in the towel right now"?

You're probably getting all excited for Logan Tom and Cynthia Barboza teaming up to knock Misty and Kerri off of the podium(s).

[Deleted]

Who wants a Sand Volleyball Crown? Messy, messy. And tacky to boot.

If you ask me.

[redincolorado]

ruffda said:

I'm really surprised Nebraska was able to win this. The indoor sand court must help, because you would have thought it would have been won by a team with more experience. Maybe there wasn't one?

Pavan is no stranger to playing on the beach. She spent her share of time in the sand as a kid in Canada. There's these little ponds up there called the great lakes--the total Canadian shore line is probable real close to the entire California coastline. In fact Ontario staddles the whole Canadian side of those puppies. So don't be surprised by her prowess in the sand.

[Deleted]

There is no comparison between playing all year round and playing when the weather permits. There is no comparison between playing indoors and outdoors either.

OK. There is comparisons, but the advantage goes to the California kids. So I'm still surprised.

[Bookumdanoaloha]

Their play was equal to a AAA - AA rated tournament in Southern California at best. The sand was very hard, so they really didn't need to dig into the sand much. However, it was nice to see some great indoor players play on the beach. They got a long way to go, before they start winning any AVP matches.

How do they get away with playing beach volleyball during the school year. Isn't that a NCAA violation. Will someone please
explain this to me.

What is the rule anyway?

BOOKUMDANOALOHA

[Ye Olde Dawg]

Um, what's the fuss about? Winning 18-16 in the third set does suggest that another team had a good chance to win too.

So Larson and Pavan did well. It sounds like a well-earned win, too. Besides the obvious talent though, do you think that there may have been other contributing factors? Did the other teams send an assistant coach with the players? Did the other teams spend practice time having a sand volleyball tournament? Just asking.

[lilred]

bookumdanoaloha said:

How do they get away with playing beach volleyball during the school year. Isn't that a NCAA violation. Will someone please
explain this to me.

What is the rule anyway?

BOOKUMDANOALOHA

I believe this counts as a "spring game" according to one of the Nebraska papers. Nebraska only played 3 spring games I believe, when they usually play four?

[hwy101]

Sand box in Nebraska, you mean litter box?