By Ryne Rickman, UT Martin Sports Information Director
The University of Tennessee at Martin’s No. 1 team of Dylan Mott and Logan Wallick emerged victorious in a marathon three-set affair, clinching the deciding point for the third straight match to push the Skyhawk beach volleyball team past No. 11 ranked Georgia State on its own home court.
The 3-2 victory over the Panthers this morning was the 13th consecutive win for UT Martin and first over a nationally ranked program. Later in the afternoon, the Skyhawks (19-7) saw their unprecedented streak come to an end in a 5-0 setback to UAB to close out the first of two days at the GSU Diggin’ Duals.
In addition to the No. 1’s performance in the day’s opener, UT Martin also received big efforts out of its No. 4 pairing of Haeleigh Paulino/Jenna Vallée (10-21, 24-22, 15-13) and the No. 2 duo of Kambree Lucas/Olivia O’Keefe (21-17, 21-18 win) against Georgia State.
Those two victories came before Mott/Wallick collected a 16-21, 21-12, 15-13 triumph to end the match, which is the third true do-or-die clincher for that pair in the last four days (also accomplishing that feat against North Alabama and Austin Peay on Tuesday after both matches were deadlocked at 2-all).
Lucy Kaufman/Addy Vaughn (21-7, 21-15 setback at No. 3) and Kayla Bryant/Kayla Carrell (21-14, 21-14 at No. 5) also battled throughout for the Skyhawks against Georgia State, who was coming off a narrow 3-2 setback to No. 2 UCLA in its previous match.
UT Martin produced several close calls in its second match of the day against the Blazers but ultimately came up short. Bryant/Carrell narrowly lost 21-18, 21-18 at No. 5 while Paulino/Vallée were barely defeated by the slimmest of margins (23-21, 23-21) at No. 4. Kaufman/Vaughn fell 21-11, 21-13 at No. 3 while Lucas/O’Keefe (No. 2) and Mott/Wallick (No. 1) both fell by identical 21-13, 21-15 margins.
For the second straight day, the University of Tennessee at Martin beach volleyball squad outperformed one of the best teams in the nation as the Skyhawks soared to a 3-2 win over No. 20 Stetson to begin the final day of the GSU Diggin’ Duals event.
After defeating No. 11 Georgia State yesterday with a win in the decisive fifth pairing, a similar situation played out today. It all came down to the No. 3 position and UT Martin stamped another signature win after Lucy Kaufman/Addy Vaughn chalked up a 10-21, 21-19, 15-13 victory to break the 2-2 tie.
Later in the day, the Skyhawks completed their participation in the GSU Diggin’ Duals with a 5-0 setback to No. 16 South Carolina. UT Martin rounds out the tournament with its first two victories over nationally ranked opponents in school history while extending its program record for most wins in a single season (20-8 overall).
The Skyhawks overcame a 2-1 deficit to surge ahead over Stetson, who defeated every team in the tournament with the exception of UT Martin. After Kayla Bryant/Kayla Carrell battled but fell 21-17, 21-17 at No. 5, Haeleigh Paulino/Jenna Vallée held on for a huge 21-18, 20-22, 15-13 victory at No. 4 to even the match at 1-all.
Stetson was able to manage a 21-16, 21-10 win at No. 1 against the Skyhawks’ vaunted tandem of Dylan Mott/Logan Wallick, UT Martin reeled off back-to-back wins. The first triumph came courtesy of Kambree Lucas/Olivia O’Keefe as they were responsible for a 15-21, 23-21, 15-11 win at No. 2. With the match on the line, Kaufman/Vaughn rose to the occasion to give the Skyhawks their third three-set win of the day.
UT Martin will take a well-deserved break from action until Friday, April 21 when it begins a two-day, four-match stretch against all Ohio Valley Conference competition in Morehead, Ky. That event will serve as the final tuneup before the Skyhawks host the 2023 OVC Championship on April 27-29.
Graphic courtesy of UT Martin Sports Information