Beach Volleyball 2/20/2024 2:41:00 PM Payne Moses

It Just Means More: Beach Week 3 Preview

Scottsdale, Ariz. - The Arizona Christian University Sandy Birds are off to a historic start (6-1) and this week's schedule affords them the opportunity to take their confidence to even greater heights. It begins with an always emotional battle against #5 OUAZ on Wednesday morning before transitioning to a couple of NCAA Division I programs, GCU and UAB, this Saturday afternoon.

Through seven matches, ACU (6-1, 3-1 GSAC) sits in second place behind #5 OUAZ (7-0, 4-0 GSAC) in the conference standings. Three Firestorm pairs (Shaw/Dykstra, Brown/Brown, Brown/Katzer) rank in the top-10 of the GSAC, all with 6-1 records.

Game Details

RV Arizona Christian at #5 OUAZ - Wednesday, February 21 at 10:00 AM
RV Arizona Christian at Grand Canyon - Saturday, February 24 at 10:00 AM
RV Arizona Christian vs UAB - Saturday, February 24 at 2:00 PM

Scottsdale Ranch Park - Scottsdale, AZ
GCU Beach Volleyball Stadium - Phoenix, AZ

*All Time Listed Are Arizona Time

Arizona Christian

The Lady Firestorm pieced together a 3-1 record in their first GSAC weekend of the 2024 season with match victories over Life Pacific and RV Hope International on Saturday afternoon. These latest two wins bring ACU to a 6-1 record, which is the best start in program history (5-2 in 2023 was the previous best).

All five matches went two sets with Life Pacific, as the #1 pair Mia Scheepens/Misty McCall pulled off the slimmest overall victory (24-22, 21-16). Haley Brown/Riley Brown earned their first of two dominant wins in the second pair, defeating the Warrior's Audrianna Guzman/Jadyn Armstrong by 16 points in two sets (21-17, 21-9).

Against Hope International, it was tied 2-2 with the #3 pair Brianna Boeckman/Eliana Cho left to finish their match. The duo won the first set before being blown out by 11 points in the second to force a deciding third set. With all eyes on them, Boeckman/Cho did not shy away from the moment and delivered a 15-12 third set to provide the Firestorm a 3-2 total victory over the Royals.

Through seven matches, three pairs boast a 6-1 record (Brown/Brown, Brown/Katzer, Shaw/Dykstra).

ACU Key Pairs

Haley Brown/Riley Brown - 6-1
Sydney Shaw/Railey Dykstra - 6-1
Amaya Brown/Emily Katzer - 6-1
Misty McCall/Mia Scheepens - 5-2
Eliana Cho/Brianna Boeckman - 4-3

Series Notes

In 17 all-time matches dating back to the 2019 season, the Firestorm are 2-15 against the OUAZ Spirit. After winning two of the first three matches, ACU has dropped the last 14, including seven in which they were blanked 5-0. Last season, the Firestorm were on the wrong side of two 3-2 matches. The most recent meeting saw ACU grab a 2-1 lead before their #1 (Misty McCall/Brianna Boeckman) and #5 pairs (Madelyn Guinn/Anna Kate Clark) fell in three sets.

ACU lost to Grand Canyon 5-0 in their lone match back on March 8, 2019. Like this upcoming match on Saturday, the Firestorm competed at GCU Beach Volleyball Stadium. It was the opening match of a tournament hosted by GCU, the 17th-ranked team in NCAA Division I at the time.

Saturday afternoon marks the first match between Arizona Christian and University of Alabama at Birmingham.

#5 OUAZ

The Ottawa University Arizona Spirit (7-0, 4-0 GSAC) have not lost yet in this 2024 season, ranked fifth in the 2024 NAIA Coaches' Top-10 preseason poll. Most notably, OUAZ defeated the defending national champion #1 Vanguard 4-1 this past Friday in the first GSAC weekend this year. The Spirit boast four 5-0 wins and have six double's pairs ranked in the top-10 of the GSAC. Sam Baer/Gabriela Corrales are the top Spirit pair, with a 6-0 record in the #5 spot.

Grand Canyon

The Grand Canyon University Lopes (2023: 26-8) will begin their 2024 season with a home contest against the Firestorm on Saturday. After qualifying from the NCAA Division I National Championship last season, the Lopes were tabbed as the 14th-ranked team in the national preseason poll released on February 16th. They competed in their second straight national championship and first as a member of the Coastal Collegiate Sports Association. The Lopes will be led by senior Krista Rowan, who finished 2023 with a 20-12 overall record that featured wins over five nationally-ranked teams. Abra Rummel enters her first season as head coach following three years as an assistant coach.

UAB

The University of Alabama at Birmingham Blazers (2023: 18-16, 2-1 CUSA) will open their 2024 season against the Firestorm on Saturday. Last season, UAB won two matches in the Conference USA Championship, including a 3-2 win over #12 Florida International University. Brooke Pertuit/Jasmine Haas (12-7, 8-6 in #1 pair) and Olivia Stant/Olivia Chychrun (12-8, all in #5 pair) were the top doubles' pairs for the Blazers in 2023 and all return for this upcoming campaign. Delaney Clesen is a first-year head coach after being an assistant during a record-breaking (18 wins) 2023 season.

Roll Storm!

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Players Mentioned

#1 Madelyn Guinn: 5' 7"; Freshman

#10 Anna Kate Clark: 5' 9"; Sophomore

#14 Brianna Boeckman: 5' 8"; Junior

#18 Amaya Brown: 5' 8"; Senior

#17 Haley Brown: 5' 5"; Sophomore

#15 Riley Brown: 5' 6"; Sophomore

#7 Railey Dykstra: 5' 8"; Junior

#4 Misty McCall: 5' 6"; Junior

#9 Sydney Shaw: 5' 5"; Junior

#19 Emily Katzer: 5' 7"; Freshman

#3 Eliana Cho: 5' 6"; Junior

#8 Mia Scheepens: 6' 0"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#1 Madelyn Guinn
: 5' 7"; Freshman

#10 Anna Kate Clark
: 5' 9"; Sophomore

#14 Brianna Boeckman
: 5' 8"; Junior

#18 Amaya Brown
: 5' 8"; Senior

#17 Haley Brown
: 5' 5"; Sophomore

#15 Riley Brown
: 5' 6"; Sophomore

#7 Railey Dykstra
: 5' 8"; Junior

#4 Misty McCall
: 5' 6"; Junior

#9 Sydney Shaw
: 5' 5"; Junior

#19 Emily Katzer
: 5' 7"; Freshman

#3 Eliana Cho
: 5' 6"; Junior

#8 Mia Scheepens
: 6' 0"; Junior