ULM sand volleyball defeats pair of ranked teams

BATON ROUGE – The ULM Warhawks beat No. 19 Tulane, shutout New Orleans and avenged their loss against No. 17 South Carolina to wrap up the first day of the Battle of the Bayou a perfect 3-0 with the matches coming from the Mango’s Beach Volleyball Club.

The ULM sand volleyball squad has won five straight matches, bumping its record to 14-5. The Warhawks now have four victories over nationally ranked opponents on the season.

GAME 1

The Warhawks took down No. 19 Tulane for the second time this season when Katie Lindstrom and Hope Pawlik split a 2-2 tie to clinch the first win of the day.

In another intense battle against the Green Wave (15-9), the match at the No. 2 court would decide the outcome over a decisive third set. That’s when Lindstrom and Pawlik came in clutch with a 15-13 win over Hannah Holmer and Grace Weaver.

After picking up a 21-18 win in the first set, Kaitlyn Shearer and Claire Crossfield came through at the end defeating Sarah Stasner and Miah Direll, 28-26, in a back-and-forth battle.

Bayleigh Hoffman and Hadley Swartz continue to be a deadly combo at the No. 3 spot, grabbing a 21-18, 21-18 win for a point that proved to crucial in the outcome.

GAME 2

For the fourth-straight time and second this week, ULM came out and flat-out dominated UNO (0-22) to complete another shutout against the Privateers.

It was the same story against UNO as the Warhawks came out on top with every pair completing a victory in straight-sets.

GAME 3

After suffering their first loss of the season against No. 17 South Carolina (12-7), the Warhawks reciprocated the favor with a 4-1 triumph for their fourth victory over a ranked squad.

Marcela Araya and Michelle McNamee picked up their 16th win at the top slot by taking down Paige Wheeler and Megan Kent in consecutive sets, 21-15, 21-14.

Hoffman and Swartz stayed perfect on the day with a 24-22, 21-14 win at the No. 3 position.

Pawlik and Lindstrom did the same when they moved past Julia Mannisto and Maddie Frome, 21-17, 22-20 at the No. 3 pair.