GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.— The Colorado Mesa University beach volleyball team will close out the regular season and make their final tune-ups for next week's AVCA Small College Beach Championships when they head to Boise, Idaho for four matches at this weekend's Boise State Classic at the Broncos' Beach Volleyball Complex.
The Mavericks, 16-7 overall, will take on four NCAA Division I foes on Friday and Saturday, starting at 11 a.m. Friday against the host Broncos. They will then take on Portland at 3 p.m. that afternoon.
On Saturday, the Mavs will face Saint Mary's (Calif.) for the third time this season at 8 a.m. before wrapping up the weekend with a noon encounter against CSU Bakersfield.
Follow the Mavs
Each match from all of the duals at the weekend tournament in Boise, will be streamed through Playsight. However, fans will need to create a free account to view them. The landing page to access them is:
https://web.playsight.com/facility/boise-state-beach-vb/home
Live statistics four all four of the matches can be found at these links:
Last Times Out
The Mavericks were last in competitive action two weeks ago, hosting Emmanuel (Ga.) and Trinidad State in a pair of tri-duals on Mar. 28 and Mar. 29.
The Mavs went 4-0 throughout the home weekend, defeating Trinidad State by 5-0 margins on both days while claiming a pair of 4-1 wins over Emmanuel, a fellow NCAA Division II opponent.
The Mavs' No. 2, 3 and 4 pairs all went undefeated while the top duo of
Ellie Ask and
Gracyn Spresser went 2-2.
The Mavs also went 4-0 at No. 5, using five different players in three combinations in that flight.
Complete Recaps of both duals can be found below
The Heart beats well
The heart of the Maverick lineup has led the Mavs throughout the season as the No. 2, 3 and 4 pairs all have strong records.
Riley Daugherty and
Lizzy Hood, who got off to a 12-0 start, are 17-6 as a duo, including a 17-5 record at No. 2. They also made one spot start in the top flight and have won four straight matches.
Barett Nolan and
Ania Swartzendruber are also 17-6 and have played in the No. 3 spot throughout the season. They have won five straight.
Jessica Passi and
Taylor Scherff are right behind the other two pairs and have a 16-7 record, all at No. 4. They have also won five straight.
D-I Wins
The Mavericks will play four NCAA Division I opponents this weekend and have already claimed three wins over D-I foes earlier this season. The Mavs took down both UTEP and Tarleton State on Mar. 1 at the Javelina Beach Showdown in Kingsville, Texas.
They then beat Central Arkansas on Mar. 22 at the Arizona Invitational in Tucson.
Six of CMU's seven losses have come to D-I foes, including two to Saint Mary's, something the Mavs would like to avenge this Saturday.
Saturday Success
The Mavericks have played ten matches on Saturdays this season and have gone an impressive 9-1.
They will play Saint Mary's and Cal State Bakersfield this Saturday.
It is also worth noting that the AVCA Small College Beach Championship National Championship match will be played next Saturday (Apr. 19).
Short Turn-Around
The Mavericks will drive home on Saturday before heading right back out for Gulf Shores, Alabama on Monday. The AVCA Small College Beach Championships begin next Thursday.
Coaching Staff
David Skaff, the only head coach in the Mavs' beach volleyball history, is in his tenth season in charge of the Maverick program. He is in his 18
th year overall as a CMU Coach, having served as a long-time assistant coach for the Mavs' indoor program before going full time to the beach program, starting in 2023.
Skaff has led the Mavericks to three straight top-3 finishes at the AVCA Small College Beach Championships, including a 2022 title.
His teams have combined for 92 wins, 69 of which have come in the last three years and the start of this year alone.
The program has also received the AVCA Team Academic Award seven times, including each of the last six.
Ara "Bob" Norwood also returns for her third season as the Mavs' assistant coach after a standout indoor and beach playing career with the Mavs.
25-0
After going 4-0 in their recent home weekend and 6-0 at home this season, the Mavericks are now a perfect 25-0 on home sand throughout their program's history.
Nine of those wins have come against Trinidad State, CMU's most common visitor in what has been a limited home schedule over the years.
The Mavs played six home matches this season, the most they have ever had a single season.
Emmanuel was a first time visitor Grand Junction last month.
Know Your Foes
Boise State – Friday – 11 a.m.
Boise State has posted a 14-10 overall record and has an 8-0 record in Southland Conference Play.
Like the Mavs, they were off last weekend. They went 2-1 at the Utah Beach Classic on Mar. 28-29, beating Oregon and UC Davis in results that were sandwiched around a 3-2 loss to the host Utes.
Avery Allen and Abbie Wolf were named as the Southland Conference Pair of the Week following those efforts after going 3-0 without dropping a set over that weekend, moving up a rung to the No. 3 spot for the win over Kendal Steeler and Kimi Waler of UC Davis.
Allen and Wolf are 9-6 as a duo this season, playing in the No. 3 (2-4), No. 4 (5-1) and No. 5 (2-1) positions.
Allyson Alden and Sharli O'Neil lead the team with a 15-8 record and have played nearly exclusively at No. 2. Ava Anderson and Addison Wolden are 11-11 in the top flight and 12-11 overall.
Portland – Friday (3 p.m.)
The Pilots hold a 4-8 record and went 1-1 last Saturday in the Eugene, falling 5-0 to the host Oregon Ducks before bouncing back for a 4-1 victory over Bushnell, their second win over the NAIA level Beacons. They also have wins over Southern Oregon and the University of the Pacific.
The Pilots took secondi n the silver bracket of the West Coast Challenge on Mar. 28-29, going 1-3 at that tournament in Santa Cruz, California.
Like the Mavs, they founded their program in 2016 and enjoyed their best season last year, going 11-14.
Saint Mary's – Saturday (8 a.m.)
The Gaels have put together a nice 14-13 season and have won three straight after falling to ninth-ranked Cal in the opener of their 4-match weekend in Berkley, California last weekend. They have a 6-2 record in the West Coast Conference play
Allie Cataldo and Hannah Couch have a team-best 17-10 record and have played in the No. 1 spot throughout the season.
Cataldo, a senior, has played in 100 career matches as just the seventh Gael to ever appear in that many.
2020 Tokyo Olympian Taylor Crabb is in his first season as an assistant coach for the Gaels.
Cal State Bakersfield – Saturday (Noon)
The Roadrunners have a 9-15 record and have dropped seven of their last eight matches, although they did get a 4-1 win over Cal State LA in a tri-dual at CSUN on Apr. 8 before falling to the host Matadors by the same score later in the afternoon.
Individual match results from those matches and a 3-2 home loss to CSUN last Saturday (Apr. 5) have not been posted on the Roadrunners' website or season statistics page.
Heading into those last three matches, Ella Erteltova and Vivi Kaelin led the team with a 16-5 record, playing 13 times at No. 2 (10-3) while posting winning records at No. 1 (3-0) and No. 3(3-2) as well.
Paola Caten and Sarah Martin, the team's most regular No. 1 pair had lost 11 straight matches together. Martin and Katey Milne, are 2-7 as a duo, including an 0-5 mark in the top flight. Caten and Oliivia Silacci-Jensen are 1-8 in matches in the top two flights.
Milne and Ella Ensign have been respectable 6-5 together as Ensign has a 11-9 record to only trail Ertelova and Kaelin.
Series Histories
The Mavs are 0-6 all-time against Boise State, a team they have faced at least once in each of the last three years on neutral sand. The last two of those match-ups have been decided by 3-2 scores. The Mavs have played the Broncos once in Boise, falling 4-1 on Apr. 2, 2022.
The Mavs are 2-0 against CSU Bakersfield. They have won both matches in 2019 and 2024 by 3-2 scores at neutral venues. Last year's meeting was on Feb. 24 and was played in Tucson, Arizona.
The Mavs will be playing Saint Mary's for the third time this season in a new rivalry. The Gaels won both match-ups by 3-2 scores on back-to-back days at the Grand Canyon Tournament on Feb. 22 and 23 in Phoenix.
CMU will face Portland for the first time on Friday.
