CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – The Texas A&M-Corpus Christi beach volleyball team will compete in its home tournament when it welcomes HCU, Stephen F. Austin and Texas A&M-Kingsville in the Islander Classic, presented by Conni & Jay Wise, Friday and Saturday at Water's Edge Park.
The Islanders (15-8) will take on SFA (2-12) Friday at 11 a.m. while the matches against HCU (11-9) and A&M-Kingsville (8-11) will be on Saturday at 9 a.m. and 1 p.m., respectively.
The Islanders were recently named the Southland Conference's regular season champions following a 3-0 victory over New Orleans in the league finale that capped a perfect 6-0 SLC record. It was the second championship in as many years after A&M-Corpus Christi won the 2022 SLC Tournament.
The championship will be celebrated on Saturday prior to A&M-Corpus Christi's match against A&M-Kingsville with a trophy presentation. In addition, the Islanders will have a special senior day recognition where they will honor seniors
Giuliana Poletti Corrales,
Kiley Lewis,
Shea Slusser,
Ashlyn Power, and
Carissa Barnes.
In addition to the 3-0 win over the Privateers, the Islanders swept Spring Hill College at the Tiger Beach Tournament where they also faced #4 Florida State and #5 LSU last weekend. Slusser and sophomore
Kela Moreno paired on court five and gritted out a three-set victory over the nationally ranked Tigers.
Moreno and Slusser, the reigning SLC Pair of the Week, are on a six-match winning streak as a pair.
A&M-Corpus Christi registered its first-ever team win over a top-20 program two weeks ago when it topped #17 Arizona 4-1. The pairing of Corrales and Lewis downed the Wildcats in straight sets at court one.
At court two, freshman
Kristin Bobay and graduate
Chloe Tome are 11-11. Along with Moreno and Slusser, this duo also holds two wins over a top-20 program after they beat #15 Florida International earlier this season.
Four pairs record double digit wins this season, including Corrales and Lewis at 12-8. Freshman
Maria Duda Fernandes de Melo/sophomore
Hannah Doyle also hold a 12-8 record while sophomore
Jade Bennett/junior
Tori Johnson registers a 13-9 record.
It will be A&M-Corpus Christi's second meeting with HCU this season after they swept the Huskies 5-0 in the conference opener over opening weekend. The Islanders have won 25 consecutive regular season meetings against SLC opponents dating back to 2019. The Islanders are a perfect 5-0 against SFA.
Full weekend schedule:
Friday
HCU vs. SFA, 9 a.m.
A&M-Corpus Christi vs. SFA, 11 a.m.
HCU vs. Kingsville, 1 p.m.
Saturday
A&M-Corpus Christi vs. HCU, 9 a.m.
SFA vs. Kingsville, 11 a.m.
A&M-Corpus Christi vs. Kingsville, 1 p.m.
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