The USF beach volleyball team competed in a home preseason scrimmage on Oct. 20 against Santa Clara University at the College of Marin. Matches were scored individually and squad scores were not counted because it was not an official match.
Though all off season scrimmages are unofficial games, the team uses them as an opportunity to assess their own level of skill and how well they work together. It also helps them maintain their physical strength in preparation for their official season beginning in early March.
“I think playing in a tournament against different people rather than just our teammates gave us a new perspective, and we got to see new competition which was definitely beneficial for the long run,” said Branson Lennon, a junior marketing major.
“It gave us some insight into where our people should be in the lineup and who their strongest people are, and even their strongest pairs are completely comparable to our strongest pairs. It gave us a confidence boost to be like, ‘yeah, we are right there with them,’” said
Kaydence Stormes, a junior psychology major.
The NCAA has allowed the team to move from their typical off season eight hour training week into a 20 hour training week, which involves weightlifting three times a week and practices in Marin five times a week.
Though beach volleyball is similar to indoor, there are some differences that set it apart. The court itself is slightly smaller but the height of the net remains the same.
Each match includes five different pairs of athletes competing against the opposing teams set of pairs. Typically, whoever wins both sets wins the entire match, however, if they tie, they move into a third set and whichever team scores 15 points first wins.
Each pair will earn points for their team by winning their matches which can lead to a win or loss of the entire volleyball match against their opponent, making it both a pair and team sport.
As they have the 2025 season to look forward to, there is hope that the Dons will place higher in conference this year. In the previous season they ranked fifth place, but they believe a better ranking is within reach.
“I really want to see us get third in the conference, I think we can. I don’t think we’re gonna be able to beat Pepperdine or LMU, but I do think we can beat Santa Clara and St. Mary’s, so I would really love for us to get third in conference this year, that would be a huge win,” said Stormes.
“I know for the last two years we finished fifth in conference and we are ready to move up. We’ve been consistently getting better, and it’s a great program, it’s looking really good,” said Jette Morris, a sophomore math major.
Aside from the team goals and daily practices, the girls have fostered a community among each other.
“Everyone is very warm and welcoming but we [are] also competitive and want to beat each other really bad[ly] in practice, but everyone’s super kind with each other and close with each other too, and it’s really nice to have people and enjoy their company, especially people you have to be around so much,” said Morris.
She added, “We do team bonding stuff every now and then. Like, we are going to go get fro-yo in a week or so and we have that all planned out.”
The next off season tournament is set for Sunday Nov. 9 at Saint Mary’s College and the first tournament of the 2025 season is scheduled for the end of February.
Editor-in-Chief: Jordan Premmer, Chief Copy Editor: Sophia McCrackin, Managing Editor: Jordan DelFiugo, News Editor: Phebe Bridges, Sports Editor: John Lindroos
