CONWAY, Ark. – The Central Arkansas Beach Bears wrapped up the UCA Beach Invitational on Saturday with a dominant 5-0 sweep over in-state foe Hendrix College, bouncing back from a tough 3-2 loss earlier in the morning to UT Martin. The Beach Bears finished the home tournament with a 2-2 record on the weekend, showing grit and growth on their home sand.
In the early matchup, UCA went toe-to-toe with a strong UT Martin squad, with three of the five scoring flights going to three sets. The Beach Bears picked up wins at the No. 1 and No. 3 positions but ultimately fell 3-2.
At the top flight,
Anna Linskey and
Riley Melton set the tone with a 21-10, 16-21, 15-13 victory over Rushing and Sulcer, continuing their strong play from Friday. The No. 3 pair of
Katie Atkinson and
Ella Layzell battled through another three-set thriller to edge Vallee and Mariscal 21-12, 15-21, 15-13.
Despite the hard-fought wins, UCA dropped close matches at flights two, four, and five.
Madelyn White and
Kenzie Foley were edged in three sets at No. 2, while the No. 5 pair of
Liliana Irizary and
Audrey Cathcart fell 21-15, 21-19 in a tightly contested match.
The Beach Bears returned in the afternoon with renewed energy for Senior Day, dominating all five flights against Hendrix without dropping a set.
Linskey and Melton capped off their weekend with a 21-13, 21-19 win at the No. 1 spot, while White and Foley cruised to a 21-10, 21-10 decision at No. 2. UCA controlled the match from top to bottom, with Tan and Siewert, Atkinson and Layzell, and Irizarry and Cathcart all notching straight-set wins to seal the sweep.
The Beach Bears honored their senior class -
Kenzie Foley,
Riley Melton,
Naya Tan and
Katie Atkinson, before the match, celebrating their dedication and leadership in front of a supportive home crowd.
Match 1 - UCA 2, UTM 3
No.1 Linksey/Melton (UCA) def. Rushing/Sulcer (UTM) (21-10, 16-21, 15-13)
No. 2 O'Keefe/Bryant (UTM) def. White/Foley (UCA) (15-21, 21-10, 15-10)
No. 3 Atkinson/Layzell (UCA) def. Vallee/Mariscal (UTM) (21-12, 15-21, 15-13)
No. 4 Eckhardt/McGee (UTM) def. Weilert/Siewert (UTM) (21-17, 21-16)
No. 5 Mott/Surratt (UTM) def. Irizary/Cathcart (UCA) (21-15, 21-19)
No. 6 Phillips/Rednour (UTM) def. Tan/Mullins (UCA) (21-14, 21-15)
Match 2 - UCA 5, Hendrix 0
No. 1 Melton/Linskey (UCA) def. Gripka/Evans-Brooks (HDX) (21-13, 21-19)
No. 2 Foley/White (UCA) def. Tillman/Roy (HDX) (21-10, 21-10)
No. 3 Tan/Siewert (UCA) def. Oden/Matz (HDX) (21-12, 21-18)
No. 4 Atkinson/Layzell (UCA) def. Meyer/Carrico (HDX) (21-10, 21-8)
No. 5 Irizary/Cathcart (UCA) def. Skeif/Rothe (HDX) (22-20, 21-17)
