David Dennis/All-Star Sports Photography

Beach Volleyball April 30, 2021

CSUB Wins Elimination Match to Advance to Day 2

LONG BEACH, Calif. – Finishing the first day of the Big West Beach Volleyball Championship with a 2-1 record, the CSU Bakersfield Roadrunners have survived and advanced to the tournament quarterfinals. CSUB upset UC Davis in the opening round, battled hard in a loss against No. 6 Cal Poly, and then staved off elimination with a close victory over CSUN to reach Saturday's action.

"I thought it wasn't our best day in terms of playing, but it was our best day as a team," said Cesar Benatti, Bakersfield's Head Coach. "We picked each other up. We had the right mindset, our energy was really good, and we made things happen. A lot of our pairs pulled out a win when it was needed. We played for each other and it was great."

The `Runners, seeded fifth of seven teams, will return to Rosie's Dog Beach on Saturday for the final day of the Big West Championship. CSUB will kick off the day at 11 a.m. (PT) with another elimination game, this time, against No. 18 Long Beach State. The `Runners have a long, hard road ahead of them as winning the Big West title will require victories in four-straight matches over four-straight hours.

Bakersfield's lone loss of the day came at the hands of one of the best teams in the country, Cal Poly. The `Runners put together a solid performance against the top-seeded squad and Benatti said he believes his team has shown it can play with best: "Today's match against Cal Poly shows us we are on the right path. It shows we can compete with anybody in the country. On top of that, last week we played Long Beach State and won one game and took two to the third set. It shows us we can do something that will be remarkable in the history of our program and we're really looking forward to it."

CSUB 3, UC Davis 2

The `Runners won three of the first five sets, foreshadowing another tight match between CSUB and UC Davis. The Aggies answered back, winning four of five sets to take a 2-1 lead on the match as two pairings went to the third and final set.

Bakersfield's Emily Hansen and Hana Makonova fought for a 15-11 win to tie the match, 2-2. In what turned out to be the match-deciding pairing, Hayley McCluskey and Mapuhola Sekona went down early, but then tied the score at 9-9. Trailing 11-9, the Bakersfield pair won six of the final eight points to clinch a thrilling, 15-13 victory for CSUB.

1. Paloma Bowman/Colleen McGuire (UCD) def. Cameron Solberg/Milica Vukobrat (CSUB) 21-14, 21-15
2. Hansen/Makonova (CSUB) def. Heather Reed/Megan Luly (UCD) 21-12, 17-21, 15-11
3. Rose Holscher/Madelin Smith (UCD) def. Anna Unke/Brooke Boiseau (CSUB) 21-15, 22-20
4. McCluskey/Sekona (CSUB) def. Ashlee Goycoochea/Bailey Herdman (UCD) 21-15, 18-21, 15-13
5. Seleisa Elisaia/Alaina Gendale (CSUB) def. Summer Bouquet/Alexa Rockas (UCD) 21-19, 21-15

No. 6 Cal Poly 5, CSUB 0

Facing off against on of the top teams in the country, CSUB did not back down and gave the Mustangs a valiant effort. Bakersfield's top two pairs pushed Cal Poly's to the third set before falling, a formidable effort against foes that boast records of 21-6 and 19-8 on the year, respectively.

1. Emily Sonny/Macy Gordon (CP) def. Solberg/Vukobrat (CSUB) 21-17, 19-21, 15-6
2. Amy Ozee/Jayelin Lombard (CP) def. Hansen/Makonova (CSUB) 23-25, 24-22, 17-15
3. Mariah Whalen/Tia Miric (CP) def. Unke/Boiseau (CSUB) 21-9, 21-19
4. Sam Strah/Eleonore Johansen (CP) def. McCluskey/Sekona (CSUB) 21-16, 21-15
5. Vanessa Roscoe/Josie Ulrich (CP) def. Elisaia/Gendale (CSUB) 21-17, 21-12

CSUB 3, CSUN 2

After the first sets, Bakersfield enjoyed a 3-2 advantage with the `Runner 1s, 2s, and 4s coasting to victory. The Matadors made the scores close in Set 2 in those pairings, but CSUB clinched a quick victory with straight sets wins from that trio. Elisaia and Gendale pushed CSUN to the brink, but came up just a few points short of making it a 4-1 advantage for Bakersfield.

1. Vukobrat/Solberg (CSUB) def. Meagan Carter/Victoria Rogers (CSUN) 21-12, 21-16
2. Hansen/Makonova (CSUB) def. Lexi McLeod/Seyvion Waggoner (CSUN) 21-9, 21-16
3. Darbi Honeycutt/Mikaela Maughan (CSUN) def. Boiseau/Unke (CSUB) 21-16, 21-18
4. McCluskey/Sekona (CSUB) def. Lauren McMurray/Kailey Klein (CSUN) 21-14, 21-10
5. True McCullough/Emily Sparks (CSUN) def. Elisaia/Gendale (CSUB) 23-21, 19-21, 16-14

~GoRunners.com~

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Players Mentioned

#2 Brooke Boiseau: 6' 1"; Junior

#1 Seleisa Elisaia: 5' 11"; Sophomore

#13 Emily Hansen: 5' 10"; Junior

#22 Hana Makonova: 5' 10"; Sophomore

#23 Hayley McCluskey: 6' 0"; Sophomore

#3 Cameron Solberg: 5' 8"; Sophomore

#25 Milica Vukobrat: 6' 0"; Sophomore

#15 Mapuhola Sekona: 5' 9"; Junior

Alaina Gendale: 5' 8"; Junior

Anna Unke: 5' 4"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#2 Brooke Boiseau
: 6' 1"; Junior

#1 Seleisa Elisaia
: 5' 11"; Sophomore

#13 Emily Hansen
: 5' 10"; Junior

#22 Hana Makonova
: 5' 10"; Sophomore

#23 Hayley McCluskey
: 6' 0"; Sophomore

#3 Cameron Solberg
: 5' 8"; Sophomore

#25 Milica Vukobrat
: 6' 0"; Sophomore

#15 Mapuhola Sekona
: 5' 9"; Junior

Alaina Gendale
: 5' 8"; Junior

Anna Unke
: 5' 4"; Junior

California State University at Bakersfield Athletics

Next Event

CSUB Wins Elimination Match to Advance to Day 2

Players Mentioned

#2 Brooke Boiseau

#1 Seleisa Elisaia

#13 Emily Hansen

#22 Hana Makonova

#23 Hayley McCluskey

#3 Cameron Solberg

#25 Milica Vukobrat

#15 Mapuhola Sekona

Alaina Gendale

Anna Unke

Players Mentioned

#2 Brooke Boiseau

#1 Seleisa Elisaia

#13 Emily Hansen

#22 Hana Makonova

#23 Hayley McCluskey

#3 Cameron Solberg

#25 Milica Vukobrat

#15 Mapuhola Sekona

Alaina Gendale

Anna Unke