Day One Action

UTEP Beach Volleyball Splits Opening Day at Arizona Invite

TUCSON, Arizona – UTEP beach volleyball split its opening day at the Arizona Invitational on Friday at Bear Down Beach, defeating San Francisco, 4-1, in the morning before falling to No. 19 Arizona, 4-1, in the afternoon dual.

With the split, the Miners (4-10) opened the weekend with a 1-1 mark against a competitive field.

DUAL 1: UTEP 4, San Francisco 1

In the morning dual, UTEP secured four straight-set victories to take down San Francisco. The pairs of Paulina Acuna/ Madison Hill, Krista Paegle/Averie Threet, Adriana Oporto/Emma Schubert, and Alexa Gonzalez Monreal/Iana Loera each delivered in straight sets to clinch the team win. Paegle and Threet set the tone early with a dominant 21-12, 21-12 win on court three, while Oporto and Schubert sealed the dual with a 21-15, 21-15 victory on court four.

San Francisco’s lone point came on court two.

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

1. Acuna/Hill (UTEP) def. Towne/Lonardi (USF) 21-17, 21-15
2. Reeves/Lennon (USF) def. Kennedy Llewellyn/Mila Popovic (UTEP) 21-14, 21-12
3. Paegle/Threet (UTEP) def. Priestly/Smith (USF) 21-12, 21-12
4. Oporto/Schubert (UTEP) def. McClung/Speier (USF) 21-15, 21-15
5. Monreal/Loera (UTEP) def. Ceriello/Holden (USF) 21-15, 21-17

DUAL 2: No. 19 Arizona 4, UTEP 1

In the afternoon matchup, the Miners faced a tough test against No. 19 Arizona. The Wildcats claimed four courts, but UTEP earned a point on court three as Paegle/Threet battled to a 27-25 first-set win before the match ended in a Wildcat retirement, giving the Miners the decision.

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

1. Holmer/Cisneros (UA) def. Acuna/Hill (UTEP) 21-18, 21-15
2. Zilliken/Walker (UA) def. Llewellyn/Popovic (UTEP) 21-19, 21-18
3. Paegle/Threet (UTEP) def. O’Meara/Streit (UA) 27-25, WR
4. Papaleo/Moore (UA) def. Oporto/Schubert (UTEP) 21-13, 21-19
5. Winter/Boyko (UA) def. Monreal/Loera (UTEP) 21-9, 21-11

UTEP awarded the point on court three following an Arizona retirement after the first set.

Day Two Action

UTEP Secures Hard-Fought Split at Bear Down Beach

TUCSON, Arizona – UTEP beach volleyball split its Saturday slate at the Arizona Invitational at Bear Down Beach, falling 3-2 to Missouri State in the morning before bouncing back with a 3-2 victory over Tarleton State.

With the split, the Miners move to 5-11 overall and 2-2 in Conference USA play.

Krista Paegle and Averie Threet were a standout pair for the Miners, finishing the weekend a perfect 4-0, all on court three.

DUAL 1 Missouri State 3, UTEP 2

In the opening dual against Missouri State, UTEP picked up points on courts three and five. The duo of Paegle and Threet earned a straight-set victory on court three, while Evelina Krieva and Mia Theisler battled to a three-set win on court five. Missouri State clinched the dual with wins on courts one, two and four.

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

1. Cepicky/Larkin (MOST) def. Paulina Acuna/Madison Hill (UTEP) 17-21, 21-19, 15-10
2. Steeie/Cleary (MOST) def. Kennedy Llewellyn/Mila Popovic (UTEP) 21-9, 18-21, 16-14
3. Paegle/Threet (UTEP) def. Stenzel/Schrandt (MOST) 21-16, 21-18
4. Niemeyer/Germann (MOST) def. Adriana Oporto/Emma Schubert (UTEP) 21-10, 21-17
5. Krieva/Theisler (UTEP) def. Kaneshiro/Fixsen (MOST) 19-21, 22-20, 15-13

DUAL 2 UTEP 3, Tarleton State 2

UTEP responded in the afternoon with a strong showing against Tarleton State, claiming the 3-2 win behind victories on courts one, two and three. Acuna and Hill rallied for a three-set win on court one, while Llewellyn and Popovic secured a hard-fought three-set victory on court two. Paegle and Threet continued their dominant weekend with a decisive straight-set win on court three to help seal the dual.

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

1. Acuna/Hill (UTEP) def. Bryant/Ceballos (TAR) 18-21, 21-15, 15-8
2. Llewellyn/Popovic (UTEP) def. Huber/Parayno (TAR) 21-18, 20-22, 15-10
3. Paegle/Threet (UTEP) def. Chun/Vickers (TAR) 21-15, 21-10
4. Lira/Orris (TAR) def. Krieva/Theisler (UTEP) 21-17, 10-21, 15-11
5. Like/Bendele (TAR) def. Alexa Gonzalez Monreal/Iana Loera (UTEP) 23-21, 21-17, 15-11

Up Next
UTEP will travel to Tampa, Florida, March 27-28 to compete in South Florida’s Stampede Beach Opener.