Grand Junction, Colo. – Hitting the road for the fourth time this season, the Colorado Mesa beach volleyball team heads north to Boise, Idaho for the Boise State Beach Classic, April 1-2.
Over the two-day span, the
Mavericks (10-7) will face off against Division I opponents, Washington, Oregon and host Boise State. On Friday, they will take on the Oregon Ducks at 1 p.m., following by the Huskies out of Washington at 3 p.m.
They will cap off the trip against hosts Boise State bright and early Saturday (April 2) at 10 a.m. A live stream will be provided for Saturday's game against the Broncos, with live stats available for fans to follow for both games on Friday.
Competing Up
A common occurrence for the program, the three teams will add up to have faced 10 Division I opponents after this weekend, having faced just three true Division II opponents.
In the nine matches against Division I opponents, the Mavs are 4-5 with wins coming against Santa Clara, the weekend sweep of Utah during the CMU Beach Tournament and the programs first win against California State Northridge during their time in the Golden State.
Their first tournament of the season saw them meet up with Texas A&M Kingsville narrowly dropping the dual to the Javelinas, 3-2. They then fought against an experienced Concordia Irvine team last week, snagging a point at the No. 3 flight.
The Mavs win over Cal State LA was the first over an equal counterpart this season.
In the weeks to come, the team will travel to Tavares, Florida for the AVCA Small College Beach Championships where they will matchup with other Division II programs, and possibly some they have already met.
Double Digits
With their 4-1 win over Cal State LA, Colorado Mesa beach volleyball claimed their 10
th win of the season. A program best, they are the first team to reach such a feat in the existence of the program, while also staying above .500.
With just two more tournaments to go in the season, they will look to build on their record and compete against some of the top-division II teams in the coming weeks at the AVCA Small College Beach Championships in Tavares, Florida.
Rising Returners
The aforementioned duo of Spitzer and Johnson have settled in to the No. 1 spot for the Mavericks. Johnson played with
Sierra Hunt last season at the threes, Spitzer with
Macie Lachemann bouncing between the ones and twos.
Finding their groove as a pair they are 6-9 overall holding their own in the top flight.
Team Newcomers
In the No. 3 spot are newcomers
Jessa Megenhardt and
Jada Hall. Megenhardt, a transfer from MSU Devner where she played indoor, is in her first season on the sand – teaming up with Hall a true freshman, both in their first seasons with the Mavs.
At 9-7, they secured the team's point against Concordia Irvine, going 2-0 against Division II foes, and 3-1 on the week in California.
Scouting the Opponents
Apr. 1 (Fri.) | vs. Univ. of Oregon | 1 p.m.
The Ducks are 8-8 following a weekend at the Pac-12 South Tournament. On a three-game skid, they suffered a 3-2 loss to Utah last weekend, whom the Mavs downed twice a while back.
Reagan Hope and Brooke Nuneviller are 6-1 together, and were behind one of the team's two points against Utah. It will be the first meeting between the two teams.
Apr. 1 (Fri.) | vs. Univ. of Washington | 3 p.m.
The Huskies are 4-8 overall after going 1-3 at the same tournament as the Ducks. Their 3-2 win over Cal was their only of the weekend, conceding a similar close decision to Oregon.
In the series history, Washington took the previous meeting by a 5-0 score. During the 2019 season,
Ara Norwood and
Holly Schmidt won their match at No. 4 for a point in the first meeting with the Huskies.
Apr. 2 (Sat.) | vs. Boise State | 10 a.m.
Hosts of the weekend, the Broncos are 11-8 and also spent some time in California last week. At Cal Poly they went 2-2 with 4-1 wins over Houston Baptist and Santa Clara.
Individually, Joey Benson leads with an 11-7 record splitting time at the fours and five with Emilia Guerra-Acuna. They are one of four pairs who have 10 wins on the season.
