YOUNGSVILLE, La. – UTEP Beach Volleyball (12-16) wrapped up a dramatic first day at the 2025 Conference USA Championship with a historic milestone and a ticket to Day Two. After a heart-pounding 3-2 loss to UAB in the opening round, the Miners responded with a dominant 3-0 sweep over Jacksonville State—their first-ever tournament win since the program's launch in 2023.
Dual 1: UAB 3, UTEP 2
The day opened with an all-out battle against No. 4 seed UAB that came down to the very last court. After splitting the first two matches—UAB winning on Court 1 and UTEP answering with a sweep on Court 2—the Blazers took a 2-1 lead with a win on Court 4. UTEP's Court 5 duo then delivered a clutch 15-13 third-set win to tie the match at 2-2. All eyes shifted to Court 3, where the final set was tied at 12-12 through 19-19 before UAB closed out the match with two straight points to escape with a 3-2 victory.
P1: Olivia Stant/Jasmine Haas (UAB) def. Madison Hill/Ema Uskokovic (UTEP) 21-10, 21-15
P2: Paulina Acuna/Marian Ovalle (UTEP) def. Azmabeth Infante/Isabel Day (UAB) 21-18, 21-13
P3: Klea Sirois/Lauren Cairo (UAB) def. Krista Paegle/Milana Popovic (UTEP) 18-21, 21-14, 21-19
P4: Claudia Stockard/Olivia Chychrun (UAB) def. Emma Schubert/Lauren Perry (UTEP) 21-17, 21-18
P5: Adriana Oporto/Mackenzi Davis (UTEP) def. Addison Atkins/Sarah Smith (UAB) 21-19, 16-21, 15-13
Order of Finish: 1, 2, 4, 5, 3
Dual 2: UTEP 3, JSU 0
Facing elimination in the afternoon session, the Miners bounced back in resounding fashion. UTEP took control early against Jacksonville State, winning the opening set on all five courts. The No. 3 pair struck first, followed quickly by a win on Court 5. With Courts 1, 2, and 4 all holding 19-16 leads at the same time, the No. 1 pair sealed the sweep by closing out their match in straight sets. Courts 1, 3, and 5 each earned two-set victories, while the Miners were on pace for potential sweeps across the board.
P1: Madison Hill/Ema Uskokovic (UTEP) def. Brooklyn Schiffli/Kayla Williams (JAX) 21-11, 21-17
P2: Paulina Acuna/Marian Ovalle (UTEP) 21-13, Carley Lynch/Hana Aiana (JAX) unf
P3: Krista Paegle/Milana Popovic (UTEP) def. Luci Wilkinson/Caty Havekost (JAX) 21-13, 21-8
P4: Emma Schubert/Lauren Perry (UTEP) 21-17, Madison Konopka/Chloe Mittelstadt (JAX) unf
P5: Adriana Oporto/Mackenzi Davis (UTEP) def. Ellie Garrett/Sanni Rantanen (JAX) 21-18, 21-7
Order of Finish: 3, 5, 1
Up Next
UTEP advances to Day Two of the CUSA Tournament and will face the loser of the Tulane vs. FIU matchup on Friday at 11:30 a.m. CT. All matches will be streamed live on ESPN+.
For complete coverage of UTEP Beach Volleyball, be sure to follow the Miners on social media at UTEP Beach Volleyball (Facebook), @utepbeachvb (Instagram) and @UTEPBeachVB (X) or visit the official home of UTEP Athletics at UTEPMiners.com.
