Beach Volleyball | 4/16/2022 8:52:00 PM

TAVARES, Fla.- The Ave Maria University beach volleyball saw its 2022 season come to an end Friday afternoon, as the Gyrenes played their final two matches at the AVCA Small College Beach Championships at Hickory Point Beach in Tavares. Ave Maria fell in a gold bracket quarterfinal, 3-2, to William Carey, but bounced back with a 5-0 victory to close the season with a fifth place finish and a 13-4 record.

In the opening match of the day, the Gyrenes held a 2-1 lead in the first three matches to finish, thanks to wins at the first and fifth positions. Alejandra Suarez and Lily Witkoski remained undefeated in the tournament, winning their third consecutive match, 21-17, 21-11, over Carey's top duo. Abigail Costlow and Reina Thomas also found success, and were 21-15, 21-11 winners in the fifth position. The other two-set match went the way of William Carey's Rachel Hartmann and Kacey Lear at the third spot.

The Gyrenes needed one win in the two matches that went to a third set, but William Carey took both to advance to the tournament semifinals, where they fell to eventual champion Webber International. At the second position, Miah Pena and Cabriella Bouterse forced a third set with a 21-16 win in the second, but fell 15-11 in the final set. Victoria Schein and Lily Grasso took the first set of their match, but then dropped the last two.

Ave Maria found their groove again in the final match of the tournament, a dominant sweep of Mobile, giving AMU their second win this season over the Rams. Suarez and Witkoski finished off an undefeated weekend with a 21-16, 21-17 win, putting the duo 16-1 on the season. Pena and Bouterse followed suit with a 21-11, 21-18 at the second position. 

Grose and Kessler won their third match of the weekend with a 25-23, 21-19 win, and Grasso and Schein bounced back with a 21-11, 21-19 win. Ave Maria's most impressive pair of the day was Costlow and Thomas, who finished the weekend 3-1 with a decisive 21-9, 21-17 victory at the number five spot.

As a team, the Gyrenes went 69-17 on the court this season, with all five duos that took the sand at Hickory Point Beach winning at least ten matches together. Suarez and Witkoski's 16 wins led the way, with the pairing of Grose and Kessler going 14-3. Costlow and Thomas were also successful as a pair, putting together a 10-1 record.