TCU
LSU
TCU Drops Two Tough Battles
3/24/2017 12:00:00 AM | Women's Beach Volleyball
Arizona State Photo Gallery 
| LSU Photo Gallery
FORT WORTH, Texas - The TCU beach volleyball team went to battle on Friday in the opening matches of the Horned Frogs Challenge in Fort Worth, but came up just short to No. 11 Arizona State and No. 8 LSU with the Horned Frogs dropping 3-2 heartbreakers in both matches.
"There were a lot of things that were working well for us today, but in the last few points of each match we were making mistakes that we should have not been making," head coach Hector Gutierrez said. "The scores today were very close and we were happy to compete with these high level schools. Overall I am very happy and the girls experienced a new level of competition. We will learn a lot from today."
TCU (7-5) opened the day by facing the Sun Devils (7-6) as the teams split the opening matches with the Frogs earning the three-set comeback on court two by Amy Neal and Jaelyn Greene for its first point of the match. The No. 3 pair of Avery Arellano and Jillian Bergeson put the second point on the board with their own comeback as they picked up a 9-21, 21-15, 15-13 win. The match would come down to the top position as Haven Hill and Molly Scheel went to the decisive third set on court one, but Arizona State took the final set, 16-14, to grab the win.
In the second match of the day, TCU found itself in charge with a 2-0 lead against the Tigers (8-5) as Neal and Greene along with Sarita Mikals and Ariah Palter took three-set victories to put the Frogs up. LSU did not back down from the challenge as they took control on the final three courts and stole the match from TCU with straight-set victories to get the 3-2 win.
"We switched up the lineup today and I think that it was a much better option for our team," Gutierrez said. "We were very good in the beginning but we couldn't finish it in the end. To improve, the girls are going to have to have more confidence and step up in their games a little bit especially at the end of the sets. We do a really good job throughout the set, but at the end we are waiting for them to have a mistake instead of going to grab the match or the set. That is what we need to work on for tomorrow."
TCU will wrap-up action at the Horned Frogs Challenge by facing No. 7 Arizona at 11:15 a.m., on Saturday. Following the home tournament, TCU will hit the road for Irvine, Calif., for the Irvine Valley College Tournament on Sunday, March 26 as they are set to face host Irvine Valley College, No. 5/5 Hawaii and No. 19 Stanford.
Live results of all the matches can be found at TCU.Statbroadcast.com with a recap of all the TCU matches available on GoFrogs.com, following the completion of the competition of each day. Live updates of the TCU matches can also be found by following TCU beach volleyball on Twitter (@TCUBeachVB).
Match Results
#11 Arizona State 3, TCU 2
1. Bianca Arellano/Whitney Follette (AZST) def. Haven Hill/Molly Scheel (TCU) 21-14, 17-21, 16-14
2. Amy Neal/Jaelyn Greene (TCU) def. Oluoma Okaro/Madison Berridge (AZST) 21-23, 21-8, 15-12
3. Avery Arellano/Jillian Bergeson (TCU) def. Ellyson Lundberg/Sage Patchell (AZST) 9-21, 21-15, 15-13
4. Kwyn Johnson/Frances Giedraitis (AZST) def. Ariah Palter/Sarita Mikals (TCU) 16-21, 23-21, 15-13
5. Cassidy Pickrell/Katelyn Carballo (AZST) def. Shane Peters/Claire Doyle (TCU) 21-13, 21-17
Ext. Sydney Palmer/Mia Rivera (AZST) def. Bridget Odmark/Tyler Lucas (TCU) 21-15, 21-14
Match Notes:
Arizona State 7-5; National ranking #11
TCU 7-4
Order of finish: Doubles (2,4,5,3,1)
#8 LSU 3, TCU 2
1. Claire Coppola/Kristen Nuss (LSU) def. Haven Hill/Molly Scheel (TCU) 21-19, 21-17
2. Amy Neal/Jaelyn Greene (TCU) def. Emmy Allen/Lilly Kessler (LSU) 16-21, 21-19, 15-7
3. Olivia Powers/Katie Lindelow (LSU) def. Jillian Bergeson/Avery Arellano (TCU) 21-14, 21-17
4. Sarita Mikals/Ariah Palter (TCU) def. Cati Leak/Maddie Ligon (LSU) 9-21, 21-19, 15-12
5. Riley Young/Megan Davenport (LSU) def. Shane Peters/Claire Doyle (TCU) 23-21, 21-9
Ext. Taylor Bradley/Callan Molle (LSU) def. Jensyn Bledsoe/Jordan Terral (TCU) 21-16, 21-15
Match Notes:
LSU 8-5; National ranking #8
TCU 7-5
Order of finish: Doubles (2,4,3,1,5)
