MIAMI, Fla. (March 1, 2020) – The Webber International University beach volleyball team earned two 4-1 victories on the second day of competition at the Florida International University Beach Bash on Saturday, February 29, defeating both San Diego City College in the morning and Florida Memorial University later on in the afternoon. During day one of the tournament on Friday, February 28, the Warriors were swept 5-0 against both FIU and the University of Tampa.

COACH'S CORNER: "I am very proud of how the team battled over the weekend," said Webber's Head Beach Volleyball Coach Jessica Gehrke-Hauptmann, who is also a graduate of Florida International University. "The first day we battled against a strong NCAA Division-I team in FIU as well as the University of Tampa, which is a top NCAA Division-II team. We used this opportunity not only to compete but to see where we currently matchup skill wise early in the season. The second day we applied what we learned from the first day of competition and were able to close out two wins against San Diego City College and Florida Memorial University. This week we will be preparing for our first home conference matches of the season and looking forward to another opportunity to compete."
 
Lineup during the FIU Beach Bash:

• No. 1: Luiza Oliveira and Julia Ferraro
• No. 2: Mekenzie Breuklander and Salla Rautiainen
• No. 3: Emily Bowen and Jessica Terry
• No. 4: Hannah Tannone and Kobi Allston
• No. 5: Brianda Valdez and Svetlana Varkentina

 
Match 1 (Webber 0, Florida International University 5):

• FIU is ranked No. 14 in NCAA Division-I.
• Mekenzie Breuklander and Salla Rautiainen forced three sets in the No. 2 spot before falling by only two points in the third set at 21-10, 15-21, 15-13.
• Brianda Valdez and Svetlana Varkentina reached double digits in both sets but lost 21-10, 21-12 in the No. 5 spot.

 
Match 2 (Webber 0, University of Tampa 5):

• The University of Tampa is an NCAA Division-II program.
• Kobi Allston and Hannah Tannone won a first set that required extra scoring before falling in three sets in the No. 4 spot 22-24, 21-12, 15-8.
• Brianda Valdez and Svetlana Varkentina again scored double digits in both sets in the No. 5 spot, falling 21-15, 21-12.
• Emily Bowen and Jessica Terry lost 21-16, 21-10 in the No. 3 spot, and Luiza Oliveira and Julia Ferraro put up a good fight in the first set before falling 21-18, 21-7 in the No. 1 position.

 
Match 3 (Webber 4, San Diego City College 1):

• Three of Webber's four wins came in three-setters, two of which required comeback efforts after dropping the first set.
• Luiza Oliveira and Julia Ferraro came back to win 17-21, 21-18, 15-8 in the No. 1 spot, as did Svetlana Varkentina and Brianda Valdez with a very close win in the third set in the No. 5 spot 11-21, 21-14, 16-14.
• Jessica Terry and Emily Bowen won 21-15, 16-21, 16-14 in another very close third set in the No. 3 spot.
• Hannah Tannone and Kobi Allston won 21-8, 21-17 in the No. 4 spot after a dominating first set.
• Mekenzie Breuklander and Salla Rautiainen fell 21-13, 21-18 in the No. 2 position.

 
Match 4 (Webber 4, Florida Memorial University 1):

• FMU is a fellow member of The Sun Conference as this was the first of two meetings this year between the Warriors and the Lions. The two teams will meet up for a conference match next weekend in Babson Park, Florida.
• Three of the five matches went to three sets with Julia Ferraro and Luiza Oliveira winning 21-11, 13-21, 15-7 in the top spot and Jessica Terry and Emily Bowen coming back to win 13-21, 21-9, 15-12 in the No. 3 spot.
• Kobi Allston and Hannah Tannone won their No. 4 match in dominating fashion by only giving up nine total points 21-4, 21-5, and Mekenzie Breuklander and Salla Rautiainen also cruised to victory 21-7, 21-10 in the No. 2 spot.
• In the No. 5 spot, Svetlana Varkentina and Brianda Valdez fell in three sets 21-11, 13-21, 15-11.

 
Next Up: The Warriors will host their first two conference matches of the season on Saturday, March 7, in Babson Park, Florida. Webber will first battle St. Thomas University at 9 a.m. before again taking on Florida Memorial at 1 p.m. on the Webber Campus Beach Volleyball Courts.