Liberty dominated much of the rest of the field of club-level teams at the one-day tournament in Siesta Key, Fla.
Twelve of the 18 members of Liberty University's women's beach volleyball team traveled to Siesta Key, Fla., to compete for the first time in Saturday's Sunshine State Outdoor Volleyball Association's (SSOVA) Fall College Club Nationals, returning to Lynchburg, Va., on Sunday as champions.
"It was awesome," Lady Flames Head Coach Payton (Carter) Davis said. "It was unique to have nationals as our first tournament of the year. I am really proud of the girls and how they competed through the elements — through the heat on the beach and the ocean breeze. They were the most encouraging and spirited team there, and I am proud of how they played. (Winning the championship) definitely made (the 12-hour trip back) worth it."
Â
Anna Moody and Jo Malone topped Liberty teammates Jessa Mathews and Lea Tsamadias in the AA final.
Juniors Anna Moody and Jo Malone, the only returning pair that played together last season, won the top AA bracket as the No. 1-ranked pair for the Lady Flames. After losing in pool play to Liberty's No. 3 duo of senior Jessa Mathews and sophomore Lea Tsamadias, Moody and Malone came back in tournament play to win the rematch in the AA final.
"I am definitely proud of all of our pairs, specifically Jessa and Lea, who did really well in their pool play before Anna and Jo got the victory in the end," Davis said. "They were helping each other to raise their level of play, motivating us to get better as a team."
Although her top six pairings are still a work in progress that won't likely be finalized before Liberty opens its dual tournament schedule in the spring semester, Davis said she got a better idea of what her lineup will likely look like then.
"Having a tournament in the fall helps us figure out the changes we'll make and the pairs we'll keep in the spring," Davis said.
Graduate Eliza Griffin, Liberty's team captain and one of its three spiritual Disciple Makers, and junior Eliza Schneider, a transfer from Wilmington (Del.) University, placed ninth in the AA bracket.
Â
Lady Flames seniors Kate Richards and Abby Quam won the A bracket on Saturday.
In the middle A bracket, Lady Flames seniors Kate Richards and Abby Quam teamed up to finish first, sweeping the top-seeded tandem of Carmen Shannon and Peighton Wadsworth from the University of South Florida-St. Petersburg in the final. That pair had won their pool, dealing Richards and Quam their only defeat.
Liberty's other two pairings, juniors Sydnee Przemielewski and Sarah Tluczek and the duo of senior Ava Kossak and sophomore Caralina "CJ" Johnson, finished in a four-way tie for fifth place out of 17 teams.
"As a team, we started off rocky all around, getting used to the sand after having a long bus trip and little sleep," Davis said. "All of the pairs got better throughout the day."
The tropical weather in southern Florida tested the Lady Flames' endurance under the heat of competition.
"The morning was beautiful, and cool, but it got pretty toasty in the afternoon," Davis said. "With the tournament going through 4 p.m., it was definitely hot with high humidity, and the UV ratings in Florida are insane. We played through the adversity of sunshine, but with it being directly on the beach, after games they could go cool off in the ocean."
She said the level of competition was not what the Lady Flames can expect in the spring, when they will play predominantly NCAA Division I, II, and III and NAIA programs.
"There are not too many club teams in general, and definitely not many around us (in Lynchburg)," Davis said. "Most are not Liberty Club Sports caliber, as we offer the best (non-scholarship) program in the country. It is hard to find other club teams that can give us a challenge. Because we don't play club teams very often, I wondered how we would fare against them, and we definitely proved we were the best."
She said the team, including Disciple Makers Przemielewski and Richards, had plenty of opportunities to be a witness for Christ on the road to capturing the championship trophy.
"Our pairs were with other teams (in their brackets and pools) all day, and they were asking about Liberty and our beliefs, and we were able to be a light to them," Davis said. "With a lot of them being from Florida, they hadn't necessarily heard about Liberty, and we were able to tell them what we are all about, and we shared and showed the Gospel through our attitudes and actions."
On Sept. 26, Liberty brought its entire team to Gastonia, N.C., to scrimmage players from Gaston Junior College in another pairs tournament format, winning 28 of 30 individual sets.
"It was a great day for it, and it was good for our girls to get experience against somebody other than themselves," Lady Flames Assistant Coach Ethan VanDePerre said, noting that none of the team members played with established partners for the entire event.
