Women’s Beach Volleyball | November 02, 2023
LOS ANGELES – The six-time national champion USC beach volleyball team will send two pairs to participate in the 2023 AVCA Fall Collegiate Beach National Championships at the John Hunt Park Sand Volleyball Complex in Huntsville, Ala., this weekend (Nov. 3-5).
The Women of Troy received two automatic berths as the defending team national champion. USC’s senior All-American Megan Kraft (San Diego, Calif.) and All-Pac-12 sophomore Madison White (Scottsdale, Ariz.) also won the AVCA’s West Coast Qualifier event two weeks ago to claim the west coast’s automatic bid into the 64-pair field.
Because teams may choose what pairs and pairings to send to the national championship, the Trojans’ two pairs will be comprised of freshman Ashley Pater(Bradenton, Fla.) and graduate transfer Ainsley Radell (Moraga, Calif.); and graduate transfers Maddi Kriz (Austin, Texas) and Grace Seits (Ramona, Calif.). Pater-Radell received the ninth seed and Kriz-Seits was tabbed the 10th seed to each hold the highest seed in their individual pools.
Presented by the U.S. Marine Corps, the three-day event will crown both a women’s pairs national champion and also determine a men’s team national champion.
The women’s competition brings together 64 pairs from 40 NCAA Division I and Division II beach programs from across the country. The lion’s share of the bids—52 of 64—were offered based on selection criteria utilizing 2023 results and records, while the final 12 were awarded at regional qualifier events. The men’s championship will include five teams, and the competition will use a best three-of-five format.
Through an expansion of the AVCA’s partnership with Volleyball World, live coverage of this weekend’s marquee matches will be available via VBTV broadcast. Center-court matches from the men’s team championship and from bracket play of top women’s pairs leading up to the championship match on Sunday will be viewable through the website and app.
Women’s pairs are divided into four-team pools, which will play on Friday (Nov. 3). Bracket play will take place on Saturday (Nov. 4) and Sunday (Nov. 5). The championship tournament format ensures that all pairs will play each of the three days. For the men’s teams, pool play begins Saturday, and a…
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