TUCSON, Arizona – UTEP beach volleyball wrapped up play at the Cactus Classic with a pair of dual losses Saturday at Bear Down Beach. The Miners fell 5-0 to Oregon in the morning before dropping a 5-0 decision to No. 17 Grand Canyon in the afternoon.

UTEP (2-6, 1-0 CUSA) battled throughout the day, with multiple courts pushing matches deep into competitive sets against strong opposition.

Dual 1 Oregon 5, UTEP 0

The Miners were competitive across the lineup, highlighted by a three-set fight at the top position. Paulina Acuna and Madison Hill rebounded from a first-set loss to take the second set and force a decisive third before narrowly falling 15-11.

Results (order of finish: 4,2,5*,3,1)

1. Rossi/Gamache (ORE) def. Acuna/Hill (UTEP) 21-10, 18-21, 15-11
2. McClellan/Snipes (ORE) def. Alexa Gonzalez Monreal/Krista Paegle (UTEP) 21-13, 21-14
3. Slojkowski/Fife (ORE) def. Kennedy Llewellyn/Mila Popovic (UTEP) 21-19, 21-18
4. Bjornson/Taylor (ORE) def. Iana Loera/Averie Threet (UTEP) 21-13, 21-17
5. Coats/Griffiths (ORE) def. Adriana Oporto/Emma Schubert (UTEP) 21-14, 21-15

Dual 2 #17 GCU 5, UTEP 0

UTEP pushed the nationally ranked Lopes in several spots, with two matches going the distance and another decided by the minimum margin late. Llewellyn/Popovic delivered the closest contest of the dual at No. 2, winning a marathon opening set 23-21 before falling in three, including a tight 22-20 third. Evelina Krieva and Deni McCalmont added another three-set effort at No. 5, forcing extra points before the Lopes secured the sweep.

Results (order of finish: 1,3,4*, 5,2)

1. Garrow/B. Drake (GCU) def. Acuna/Hill (UTEP) 21-11, 22-20
2. Keefe/Edler (GCU) def. Llewellyn/Popovic (UTEP) 21-23, 21-16, 22-20
3. Kohl/Manthe (GCU) def. Gonzalez Monreal/Paegle (UTEP) 21-12, 21-14
4. J. Drake/Coens (GCU) def. Loera/Threet (UTEP) 21-14, 21-11
5. Checani/Wittren (GCU) def. Krieva/McCalmont (UTEP) 21-10, 21-13, 15-7

Up Next

UTEP will have a week off from competition before traveling to New Orleans, Louisiana, for the Bayou Beach Duals hosted by Tulane on March 13-14. The Miners will face Southeastern Louisiana and Tulane on Friday, followed by Saturday rematches against Texas A&M–Kingsville and McNeese.

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