GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.— The Colorado Mesa University beach volleyball team is poised to set a new program record for wins and once again contend for the NCAA Division II title at this week's AVCA Small College Beach Championships, which begin Thursday morning in Gulf Shores, Alabama.
The Mavericks, 18-9 on the season, have been seeded fourth out of the 18 teams in the tournament and headline Pool D, one of six 3-team pools.
The Mavs will play 16
th seeded Erskine and No. 9 seed Carson-Newman on Thursday in their round-robin pool play matches. The results of those will then form the match-ups for Friday's Challenge Rounds, which in turn will set the match-ups for the Gold, Silver and Bronze brackets on Saturday.
The Mavs will play Erskine at 8 a.m. CDT (7 a.m. Mountain) and Carson-Newman at 2:30 p.m. CDT (1:30 p.m.).
The format for the Division II tournament
can be seen here.
Follow the Mavs
The tournament webpage is
https://www.avca.org/event/avca-small-college-beach-volleyball-championships/
Live results can be found on the VolleyballLife.com site at
https://avca.volleyballlife.com/tournament/27872?tab=information
Complete Daily recaps will be posted on
www.cmumavericks.com.
Last Times Out
The Mavericks wrapped up the regular season last weekend at the Boise State Classic in Boise, Idaho. The Mavs played four NCAA Division I institutions and split a pair of 5-0 decisions on Friday, sweeping Portland after falling to the hosts.
On Saturday, the Mavs dropped a 3-2 decision to Saint Mary's for the third time this season but rallied for a 3-2 win over CSU Bakersfield to wrap up the day with a 1-1 record and the weekend with a 2-2 mark.
No. 5 pair
Emerson Deferme and
Lucy Kaufman went 3-1 throughout the weekend to lead the Mavs.
Recaps and results from both days can be found below:
National Success
Success at the national level is nothing new to the Mavericks, who hope to continue the trend this week. The Mavs won the national tournament in 2022 and took second in 2023 before finishing third last year.
They also took fourth in 2019 and tied for fifth in 2021 in their first two appearances. The 2020 tournament was not held due to COVID.
The Mavs have a 21-10 all-time record in the tournament, including a 14-4 mark over the past three years.
In search of record-setting wins
The Mavs enter the week with a chance to set a new record for wins in a season. The Mavs' 18 victories are already equal to last year's squad, which finished 18-12. The 2023 team went 19-8 to set the program record.
Against the Field
The Mavs have a 3-1 record against this week's tournament field and went 4-1 against NCAA Division II opposition throughout the season. The Mavs' lone loss in this sub-set came to top seeded Concordia University Irvine on Mar. 19 in Irvine. The Mavs had a 4-1 win over No. 5 seed Texas A&M-Kingsville on the road on Feb. 28.
They then claimed a pair of 4-1 decisions over No. 14 seed Emmanuel at home on Mar. 28 and 29. The Mavs also swept a 5-0 win over Division II Cal State LA on Mar. 19.
The Golden Eagles are not participating in the national event.
Lineup
The Mavs will use the same lineup they used last weekend for this week's tournament. The top four pairs have also been quite consistent throughout the season while the Mavs have used a variety of combinations in the No. 5 spot.
Here is a look at the Mavs' current lineup, which each pair's 2025 season record.
- Ellie Ask/Gracyn Spresser (14-12)
- Riley Daugherty/Lizzy Hood (18-9)
- Barett Nolan/Ania Swartzendruber (19-8)
- Jessica Passi/Taylor Scherff (18-9)
- Emerson Deferme/Lucy Kaufman (5-1)
D-I Wins
The Mavericks claimed five wins over NCAA Division I foes this season, beating UTEP, Tarleton State and Central Arkansas earlier in the week before dispatching Portland and CSU Bakersfield last week.
The Mavs' five D-I wins this season matched the 2022 squad's accomplishments.
Pairs Challenge
In addition to their main team lineup, the Mavs have also entered two additional pairs in the Pairs Challenge Tournament that will be contested on Thursday.
Although there is no overall champion, the winners of each of the ten 4-pair pols will receive an award.
Izzy Burns and
Sofia Kolbe will play in Pool F and will face Kyla Dow and Kaya Lobo of Tampa in their first match and then either a pair from CUI or Mary Hardin Baylor.
Lauren Rohlwing and
Stormi Tadlock will play in Pool H and take on Saint Leo's Madison Moore and Josie Villarreal in their first match. They will then face a duo from Tusculum or Palm Beach Atlantic.
Burns & Kolbe have a 1-2 record in the No. 5 spot of the Mavs' lineup this year while Rohlwing and Tadlock went 3-3.
Saturday Success
The Mavericks have played 12 matches on Saturdays this season and have gone an impressive 10-2.
The AVCA Small College Beach Championship National Championship match will be played on Saturday.
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 94 wins, 71 of which have come in the last four years.
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 in a single season.
Emmanuel was a first time visitor Grand Junction last month.
Know Your Pool D Foes
Erskine
The Flying Fleet have a 7-20 overall record and went 3-7 in South Atlantic Conference matches. They then went 1-2 at last weekend's SAC Tournament, advancing to the semifinal.
They squad out of Due West, South Carolina, has spent the entire season in the Southeastern part of the country but played just twice at home, falling 5-0 to both Division I College of Charleston and SAC Rival Emmanuel (Ga.) on Mar. 19. They did win over Emmanuel, 4-1 a week later.
CMU went on to beat the Lions twice just days later in Grand Junction.
Maverick sophomore
Phoenix Slager led last year's Fleet squad in wins last year before transferring to CMU. They went a program-best 19-19 last year.
Carson-Newman
The Eagles are 23-4 this season and enter the national tournament on a 16-match winning streak. They went 4-0 and won the South Atlantic Conference Tournament title last week, defeating Tusculum, 3-2 in the final.
Camryn Ehlers and Morgan Foy lead the team in wins, posting a 20-5 record, including an 18-4 record at No. 4.
Paige Halcrow and Jenny Ille have a solid 18-9 record on Court 1 while Trinity Hafey and Kylee Oldenburger are 16-1.
Series Histories
The Mavs are 1-0 all-time against each of their Pool D opponents. They won 3-0 over Erskin on Apr. 14, 2023 during that year's AVCA Small College Beach Championships.
The Mavs defeated Carson-Newman, 3-2 on Apr. 16, 2011 in that year's national tournament.
Up Next
This weekend will wrap up the Mavs' tenth season of beach volleyball.
