BATON ROUGE, La. (March 1, 2025) – The University of North Alabama beach volleyball team secured its second and third wins of the Tiger Beach Challenge with Saturday triumphs over Southeastern Louisiana and South Florida.
Day two had a perfect ending in the finale from Baton Rouge, taking home two wins to cap the weekend from LSU at 3-1. Opening with the early-morning bout against Southeastern Louisiana, North Alabama rolled to a 4-1 victory over the Lady Lions before securing the second win in a sweep of the Bulls.
UNA won nine of 10 matches in regulation, with flight pairings one, three, four and five all taking home two wins. Senior Katy Floyd and junior Selma Robinson led from the top flight, while sophomore Aurora Bibolotti and freshman Paige Griner held down the third flight position. Fourth-flight pair Lucy Wedding and Mabrey Whitehead added two more wins while graduate Kaitlyn Holbrook and junior Hailey Benesz finished with their second and third wins of the outing.
Junior Ryenne Gepford and freshman Pien Grooters added an additional win from flight two against South Florida.
After the weekend's events, North Alabama now sits at an even 4-4 on the season.
Match 1 — North Alabama 4, Southeastern Louisiana 1
Day two of the Tiger Beach Challenge opened on a high note with UNA taking the dual against Southeastern Louisiana. Flights one, three, four and five led in the solid effort against the Lady Lions, giving the North Alabama the positive start on the day's event.
Floyd and Robinson secured a straight-set victory from court one, defeating SLU's Lex Logarbo and Mia McKinney, 21-13, 21-15. Bibolotti and Griner followed suit from flight three, beating the Lady Lions' Mia Sauers and Hicks in dominant fashion, 21-10, 21-8.
Wedding and Whitehead needed three sets in their bout against SLU's Kennedi Steele and Gabi Hrubanova, but the two pulled through for a 26-28, 21-19, 15-6 thriller from court four. The fifth flight pairing of Benesz and Holbrook capped the dual with a 21-13, 21-13 win over the Lady Lions' Taylor Stockwell and Emmy Vincent.
Gepford and Grooters had a competitive bout from court two, needing three sets against SLU's Bella Lockwood and Maggie Paiva. The two rebounded from a defeat in the opening set to tie the match with a second-set win, but the two would fall in the third with a 22-20, 25-27, 15-12 final score.
1. Katy Floyd/Selma Robinson (UNA) def. Lex Logarbo/Mia McKinney (SLU) 21-13, 21-15
2. Bella Lockwood/Maggie Paiva (SLU) def. Ryenne Gepford/Pien Grooters (UNA) 22-20, 25-27, 15-12
3. Aurora Bibolotti/Paige Griner (UNA) def. Mia Sauers/Makayla Hicks (SLU) 21-10, 21-8
4. Lucy Wedding/Mabrey Whitehead (UNA) def. Kennedi Steele/Gabi Hrubanova (SLU) 26-28, 21-19, 15-6
5. Hailey Benesz/Kaitlyn Holbrook (UNA) def. Taylor Stockwell/Emmy Vincent (SLU) 21-13, 21-13
Match 2 — North Alabama 5, South Florida 0
All five Lion pairings added wins to their tally with North Alabama sweeping South Florida in the closing dual.
Three of the matches would be straight-set triumphs, with two coming down to the third en route to UNA taking the overall dual.
Floyd and Robinson took a win from the top flight over the Bulls' Ola Stadnik and Sam Crosby, 21-10, 21-8. Grooters and Gepford earned a win from court two, battling in the third set en route to a 21-15, 18-21, 15-6 victory over USF's Audrey Gauthier and Bella Almeida.
Flight three with Bibolotti and Griner was also a three-set bout, overcoming a dropped first set to rally to beat South Florida's Alyx Zapatka and Morgan Anderson, 18-21, 21-15, 15-11.
Wedding and Whitehead from flight four took a 21-15, 21-15 contest against the Bulls' Ryann Genest and Bailey Chin. The fifth flight saw Benesz and Holbrook nab the team-high third weekend win in a 21-10, 21-16 triumph over South Florida's Sasha Pasloski and Cornelia Crudu.
1. Katy Floyd/ Selma Robinson (UNA) def. Ola Stadnik/ Sam Crosby (USF) 21-10, 21-8
2. Pien Grooters/ Ryenne Gepford (UNA) def. Audrey Gauthier/ Bella Almeida (USF) 21-15, 18-21, 15-6
3. Aurora Bibolotti/ Paige Griner (UNA) def. Alyx Zapatka/ Morgan Anderson (USF) 18-21, 21-15, 15-11
4. Lucy Wedding/ Mabrey Whitehead (UNA) def. Ryann Genest/ Bailey Chin (USF) 21-15, 21-15
5. Hailey Benesz/ Kaitlyn Holbrook (UNA) def. Sasha Pasloski/ Cornelia Crudu (USF) 21-10, 21-16
COMING UP NEXT
The Blazer Beach Bash is next for the UNA Beach Volleyball Lions, who travel to Birmingham for the two-day event on March 7 & 8.
For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
