Flyers Close Out Spring Flyers Invitational With Win Over Catawba

The Flyers Invitational took place over the weekend at Sandhills, where the Lady Flyers beach volleyball team hosted Gaston College, Richard Bland College, and Catawba College in a series of matches between Friday and Saturday. The Flyers finished the weekend with a 1-2 record, losing to Gaston and Richard Bland before securing a victory against Catawba.

"Each game that we're playing is an opportunity to get better," said Flyers coach Alicia Riggan. "I hope that we continue to build confidence. It doesn't matter what the record was before; it's about who goes out there and plays to the best of their ability to achieve the outcome."

The Flyers started the weekend with a matchup against Gaston College, where Gaston clinched a hard-fought 3-2 victory. Jenna Luquer and Aydan Bullard put Sandhills on the board early, winning in two sets (21-11, 21-16), and another two-set victory from Alexis Hinson and Alyssa Maragelis (21-14, 21-8) gave Sandhills their second win of the day. However, despite the hard-fought efforts of Lainey Mullins and Dajsha Fields (11-21, 14-21), Caroline Bradford and Emma Brown (10-21, 14-21), and Nicole Lambert and Olivia Barlowe (18-21, 17-21), Gaston secured the 3-2 win.

"Working together and communicating is super important," said Maragelis. "You've got to always be saying something."

After a short break, the Flyers were back in action against Richard Bland College for their second game of the day. Facing the 15-4 Eagles and the rain, the Flyers had their work cut out for them. The game began with Bradford and Brown losing a close two-set game (22-20, 21-18), followed by Luquer and Bullard falling in two sets (21-16, 21-11). Lambert and Barlowe lost a close game (21-17, 21-17), and then Mullins and Fields fell in two sets (21-10, 21-9), before Hinson and Maragelis fell short in a three-set thriller with a back-and-forth final set (9-21, 21-18, 16-18), giving Richard Bland the 5-0 victory.

"You can't beat yourself up out there," said Hinson. "And if you are, your teammate has to be there to pick you up, because if you're in your head, that's the only person you have on the court."

"We've known each other for a year already, and we already have that trust between each other, so when we're out there, we know we've got each other's backs," said Maragelis.

The Flyers returned on Saturday to warmer weather and a match with Catawba College. Bradford and Brown opened things up with a close two-set win (21-19, 21-19), followed by a significant two-set win from Hinson and Maragelis (21-13, 21-8). Luquer and Bullard lost a close two-set game (22-20, 13-21), and Fields and Mullins fell short in two sets (21-13, 21-15), before Lambert and Barlowe secured a crucial two-set win (21-16, 21-19), giving the Flyers the 3-2 win in the final match of the weekend.

"Caroline and Emma really took care of business today; they were so close yesterday, and to see them go over that hump was really impressive," said Riggan. "I feel like they played the best they've played together, and they kind of just formed in the last week, so that's really exciting."

"To see Liv and Nikki pull that out with a 2-0 victory, they've been so close, and I think that was really big for their confidence," said Riggan. "Lainey and Dajsha had some moments where they were right there in it too; it's tough playing in the 1s."

The Flyers' win over Catawba College was significant, as it marked the first in program history against the Indians, coming a month after a 5-0 loss to Catawba.

"We definitely were more confident in what we were doing, since it's later in the season," said Maragelis. "We talked a lot more about what shots to hit, where to be on defense, and just had a lot of trust in each other."

After the 1-2 weekend, Sandhills now sits at 6-8 on the season. The Lady Flyers are back in action on Tuesday as they host St. Andrews University in a doubleheader at 3:00 PM and 5:00 PM.

"It's nice to be able to be home and have that support," said Riggan. "We had great support this weekend, and hopefully, the weather's nice, and people come out to support these girls on Tuesday."

"We're ready to keep getting these dubs!" said Hinson.

T. Ratcliff