GULF SHORES, Ala. – The CUI beach volleyball team advanced to the finals for the second straight year in a row for the final day in the AVCA Small College Beach Volleyball Championships. The Golden Eagles finished in second place after dropping the match to the same team last year University of Tampa.
Duo Lemoine and Ostojic were recognized at the end of the tournament with All-American honors. This is the second year in a row that Lemoine has received this honor.
Semifinals: CUI 3, Texas A&M - Kingsville 0
The Golden Eagles started the day playing against another team that they have played earlier in the season. CUI knew what they needed to do against this team and took care of business securing another sweep. Slots two, three, and five secured the wins for CUI advancing them to the finals.
1.
Kelissa Lemoine/
Sara Ostojic (CUI) vs. Liana Huesca/Rylan Pollard (TAMUK) unfinished
2.
Korah Nordin/
Gabrielle Reinking (CUI) def. Kalani Vasquez/Madelyn Wallace (TAMUK) 21-19, 21-15
3.
Kelia Giusta/
Cameron Solberg (CUI) def. Laura Betsa/Taylor McCarthy (TAMUK) 21-13, 21-11
4.
Olivia Medina/
Eva Prewitt (CUI) vs. Emma Daugherty/Meghan Stiefer (TAMUK) unfinished
5.
Nicole Miller/
Ashley Rossi (CUI) def. Clara Presmanes-Garate/Elizabeth Williams (TAMUK) 21-15, 21-14
Championship Game: CUI 3, Univ. of Tampa 0
This is the fifth meeting these two teams have had and have been at this very tournament. The Golden Eagles played them in the finals last year and was looking to snap Tampa's win streak this time around.
No. 1 and 4 pairs for the Green and Gold were able to take a point from Tampa in just two sets. The games did not come easily but CUI was able to strategize to take down their opponents. Slots two and three put on a show going the distance in three sets and did not go down easily. Ultimately the Spartans were able to make some adjustments to make it to the finish line first with 15 points. The Spartans put up a tough competition for the Golden Eagles and were able to earn their victory by a close score 3-2.
1.
Kelissa Lemoine/
Sara Ostojic (CUI) def. Elizabeth Price/Angel Williams (UT) 21-18, 21-17
2. Hailey Wolfe/Nevaeh Wolfe (UT) def.
Korah Nordin/
Gabrielle Reinking (CUI) 16-21, 21-8, 15-8
3. Madelynn Hokanson/Hailey Peterson (UT) def.
Kelia Giusta/
Cameron Solberg (CUI) 21-13, 20-22, 15-13
4.
Olivia Medina/
Eva Prewitt (CUI) vs. Anna Bayes/Brooke Green (UT) 21-18, 22-20
5. Samantha Ostrander/Meghan Schreck (UT) def.
Nicole Miller/
Ashley Rossi (CUI) 21-17, 21-19
The Golden Eagles finish with a 26-10 record making this their best winning record in program history. They topped their previous performance in 2024 at 24-12.
Click here to see the full CUI beach volleyball schedule.
