Women's Beach Volleyball | March 30, 2019

MALIBU, Calif. – The No. 2-ranked USC beach volleyball team (16-3) dropped a narrow 3-2 decision to No. 5 Pepperdine (16-6) on the sands of Zuma Beach on Saturday, March 30. The loss snapped a six-dual winning streak for the Women of Troy and dropped the Trojans under .500 against their longtime rival Waves (12-13). USC finishes the month of March with a 15-2 mark.
 
In a staggered start format, the Nos. 2 and 3 pairs played for points first. Pepperdine notched the first point of the dual with a win at court two where Gigi Hernandez and Deahna Kraft took down senior Terese Cannon and sophomore Sammy Slater in straight sets, 21-19, 21-18. The Trojans fired back to even the score when sophomore Haley Hallgren and senior Alexandra Poletto collected a 26-24, 21-12 win over Maddie Dilfer and Nikki Lyons at the No. 3 spot.
 
In a non-scoring match, freshman Hannah Martin and Josannah Vazquez defeated Jordan Ferrari and Michela Kasper, 21-19, 22-20.
 
With all three of the remaining pairs in action, Pepperdine went in front once more with another straight-set win at the No. 5 position. There, Katie Gavin and Simone Priebe defeated the first-time pairing of junior Cammie Dorn and freshman Laurel Kujan, 21-14, 21-16. Each of the final two matches went to three sets and were two-point affairs in the third frame.
 
At the top court, senior Abril Bustamante and sophomore Tina Graudina fought off Brook Bauer and Heidi Dyer to take a 21-17, 19-21, 15-13 win and evened the dual at two-all. At the No. 4 position, junior Joy Dennis and sophomore Maja Kaiser were edged, 22-20, in the first set by Skylar Caputo and Alexis Filippone, but came back to take the second, 21-14. The Trojan pair claimed match and dual point at 14-13, but the Waves roared back to finish a 16-14 win and claimed the dual, 3-2.
 
USC is back in action on Wednesday (April 3) when the Trojans travel to Westwood to take on crosstown rival UCLA (20-0) at 3 p.m. PT, a dual that will be shown live on Pac-12 Los Angeles.
 
For more information on the three-time national champion USC beach volleyball team and a complete schedule, please visit USCTrojans.com and follow @USCBeach on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
 
No. 5 Pepperdine def. No. 2 USC, 3-2
Zuma Beach • Malibu, Calif.
Saturday, March 30, 2019
Records: USC (16-3), Pepperdine (16-6)
1. Abril Bustamante/Tina Graudina (USC) def. Brook Bauer/Heidi Dyer (PEPP); 21-17, 19-21, 15-13
2. Gigi Hernandez/Deahna Kraft (PEPP) def. Terese Cannon/Sammy Slater (USC); 21-19, 21-18
3. Haley Hallgren/Alexandra Poletto (USC) def. Maddie Dilfer/Nikki Lyons (PEPP); 26-24, 21-12
4. Skylar Caputo/Alexis Filippone (PEPP) def. Joy Dennis/Maja Kaiser (USC); 22-20, 14-21, 16-14
5. Katie Gavin/Simone Priebe (PEPP) def. Cammie Dorn/Laurel Kujan (USC); 21-14, 21-16
Exh: Hannah Martin/Josannah Vazquez (USC) def. Jordan Ferrari/Michela Kasper (PEPP); 21-19, 22-20
Order of finish: 2, 3, 5, 1, 4*