Women's Beach Volleyball | May 07, 2023

GULF SHORES, Ala. – The third-seeded and No. 3-ranked USC beach volleyball team (32-5) won its third straight NCAA championship (sixth national title and fifth NCAA crown) on a 3-2 win over top-seeded and No. 1-ranked crosstown rival UCLA (40-4) at Gulf Beach Place on Sunday, May 7.
 
The win brings USC its 135th national championship in school history and marks the 37th crown won by the Women of Troy. It is the 112th NCAA championship for the University and the 27th NCAA championship won by a USC women's team.
 
Of additional significance, this is the first USC women's program ever to win three consecutive NCAA crowns. Previously, the beach volleyball team won three straight national titles (2015-17) but only 2016-17 were NCAA championships. Between 1977-80, women's tennis won five national championships; two awarded by the USTA (1977-78) and three from the AIAW (1977, '79-80).
 
In their fifth meeting with the Bruins, the Trojans won for the second time this spring and snapped a three-dual losing streak to UCLA to improve to 23-17 all-time over their crosstown rival.
 
USC won its 13th straight NCAA match and goes to 27-4 all-time in NCAA tournament duals with a 34-8 mark in duals played on Gulf Shores sand. Trojan pairs are now 85-32 in individual matches at the championship.
 
Played in flights, the Trojans went up, 2-0, on a pair of even-court wins. At the fourth position, graduates Jenna Johnson and Ashlyn Rasnick-Pope topped Marlie Monserez and Jessie Smith, 22-20, 21-14, to claim the first point of the dual.
 
At the No. 2 position, graduate Madison Shields and freshman Madison White got a hard-fought 24-22, 21-23, 15-9 win in three sets over Peri Brennan and Abby Van Winkle to go to 22-9 to end the season. 
 
The Bruins fired back with two straight-set wins at the corners. At the top court, Maggie Boyd and Lexy Denaberg completed a 21-17, 21-13 win over the Trojans' junior duo of Megan Kraft and Delaynie Maple, to make the score 2-1. Moments later, Devon Newberry and Jaden Whitmarsh got a 21-18, 21-19 win at the No. 5 position over junior Olivia Bakos and freshman Gabby Walker.
 
With the dual tied, all eyes turned to court three. There, twin seniors Audrey Nourse and Nicole Nourse won their first set over Haley Hallgren and Rileigh Powers, 21-18, but were split in the second with a 21-19 loss. In the third, the teams went back and forth until the twin sisters finished off a 15-11 win to sew up the dual and the championship. The win makes the twins 29-6 on the season and marks their 91st-career victory as a pair, which matches the second most by a Trojan duo all-time (Nicolette Martin and Allie Wheeler, 2014-16).
 
Fourth-year USC head coach Dain Blanton has now won three NCAA championships as a head coach and owns six rings including the three he won as an assistant coach with the Trojans. He concludes his fourth season with a 105-15 career record, which includes an unblemished 13-0 mark on Gulf Shores sand.
 
For more information on the USC beach volleyball team, a complete schedule, and results, please visit USCTrojans.com/beach. Fans of the Women of Troy can follow the team on Instagram and on Twitter @USCBeach.
 
[3] No. 3 USC def. [1] No. 1 UCLA, 3-2
2023 NCAA Beach Volleyball Championship · Championship Dual
Gulf Beach Place · Gulf Shores, Ala.
Sunday, May 7, 2023
RECORDS: USC (32-5), UCLA (40-4)
1. Maggie BOYD/Lexy DENABERG (UCLA) def. Megan KRAFT/Delaynie MAPLE (USC); 21-17, 21-13
2. Madison SHIELDS/Madison WHITE (USC) def. Peri BRENNAN/Abby VAN WINKLE (UCLA); 24-22, 21-23, 15-9
3. Audrey NOURSE/Nicole NOURSE (USC) def. Haley HALLGREN/Rileigh POWERS (UCLA); 21-18, 19-21, 15-11
4. Jenna JOHNSON/Ashlyn RASNICK-POPE (USC) def. Marlie MONSEREZ/Jessie SMITH (UCLA); 22-20, 21-14
5. Devon NEWBERRY/Jaden WHITMARSH (UCLA) def. Olivia BAKOS/Gabby WALKER (USC); 21-18, 21-19
Order of finish: 4, 2, 1, 5, 3*