FIU duo wins Saturday sand tourney

The tournament included teams from UH, Florida International, Hawai‘i Pacific, and Chaminade in a 16-team main draw and consolation bracket.

The 16-team, single-elimination main draw was an all-FIU final with top-seeds Kate Stepanova and Ksenia Sukhareva defeating third-seeded Jess Mendoza/Maryna Samoday, 21-13, 19-21, 15-7. Both FIU teams defeated Hawai‘i teams in the semifinals en route to the finals.

Stepanova and Sukhareva ousted Natasha Bell and Tai Manu-Olevao, 21-19, 21-16 while Mendoza and Samoday easily handled Katie Spieler and Ginger Long, 21-12, 21-15. In the all-UH third place match, Spieler and Long won in straight sets, 21-10, 21-16.

In the quarterfinals, Stepanova and Sukhareva needed three sets to dispatch UH’s Ali Longo and Karlee Riggs, 21-11, 18-21, 15-10. Longo tallied 21 kills, out-dueling Stepanova, who finished with 20. Spieler and Long advanced to the semifinals with a come-from-behind 19-21, 21-11, 15-13 victory over FIU’s Emily Podschweit and Tina Toghyani in the quarters. In that match, Long posted a tournament-high 25 kills while Spieler recorded 17 kills and 22 digs.

In the finals, Stepanova and Sukhareva dominated the opening set before letting Set 2 slip away. The duo put things together in the deciding set, outscoring their teammates 7-1 to close out the match. Sukhareva pounded 20 kills while Stephanova had 17.

Championship Bracket (single elimination)

Round of 16

#1 Kate Stepanova/Ksenia Sukhareva (FIU) def. #16 Brenda Walker/Regina Johnson (CU), 21-7, 21-5

#9 Ali Longo/Karlee Riggs (UH) def. #8 Maria Coukoulis/Elly Citron (FIU), 21-10, 21-13

#4 Natasha Bell/Tai Manu-Olevao (UH) def. #13 Kim Spring/Athena Maskarich (CU), 21-16, 21-9

#5 Samantha Rummans/Chelsey Buyuan (HPU) def. #12 Camila Rosado/Jess Gehrke (FIU), 21-12, 21-13

#11 Jane Croson/Ashley Kastl (UH) def. #6 Pihana Kea/Amanda Moriarty (HPU), 21-13, 21-9

#7 Emily Podschweit/Tina Toghyani (FIU) def. #10 Ku‘ulei Zalopany/Olivia Urban (UH), 21-9, 17-21, 15-13

#3 Jess Mendoza/Maryna Samoday (FIU) def. #14 Haley Doerfler/Jamie Asuncion (HPU), 21-12, 21-10

#2 Katie Spieler/Ginger Long (UH) def. #15 Valentina Bevilacqua/Darcie Horiuchi (CU), 21-15, 21-8

Quarterfinals

#1 Kate Stepanova/Ksenia Sukhareva (FIU) def. #9 Ali Longo/Karlee Riggs (UH), 21-11, 18-21, 15-10

#4 Natasha Bell/Tai Manu-Olevao (UH) def. #5 Samantha Rummans/Chelsey Buyuan (HPU), 21-18, 21-19

#3 Jess Mendoza/Maryna Samoday (FIU) def. #11 Jane Croson/Ashley Kastl (UH), 21-16, 21-13

#2 Katie Spieler/Ginger Long (UH) def. #7 Emily Podschweit/Tina Toghyani (FIU), 19-21, 21-11, 15-13

Semifinals

#1 Kate Stepanova/Ksenia Sukhareva (FIU) def. #4 Natasha Bell/Tai Manu-Olevao (UH), 21-19, 21-16

#3 Jess Mendoza/Maryna Samoday (FIU) def. #2 Katie Spieler/Ginger Long (UH), 21-12, 21-15

Finals

#1 Kate Stepanova/Ksenia Sukhareva (FIU) def. #3 Jess Mendoza/Maryna Samoday (FIU), 21-13, 19-21, 15-7

3^rd Place Match:

#2 Katie Spieler/Ginger Long (UH) def. #4 Natasha Bell/Tai Manu-Olevao (UH), 21-10, 21-16

Consolation Bracket

Maria Coukoulis/Elly Citron (FIU) def. Brenda Walker/Regina Johnson (CU), 21-12, 21-19

Camila Rosado/Jess Gehrke (FIU) def. Kim Spring/Athena Maskarich (CU), 21-10, 21-18

Ku‘ulei Zalopany/Olivia Urban (UH) def. Pihana Kea/Amanda Moriarty (HPU), 21-14, 24-22

Haley Doerfler/Jamie Asuncion (HPU) def. Valentina Bevilacqua/Darcie Horiuchi (CU), 21-15, 21-13

Camila Rosado/Jess Gehrke (FIU) def. Brenda Walker/Regina Johnson (CU), 21-15, 21-7

Ali Longo/Karlee Riggs (UH) def. Samantha Rummans/Chelsey Buyuan (HPU), 21-11, 17-21, 15-13

Pihana Kea/Amanda Moriarty (HPU) def. Valentina Bevilacqua/Darcie Horiuchi (CU), 21-16, 21-8

Jane Croson/Ashley Kastl (UH) def. Emily Podschweit/Tina Toghyani (FIU), 16-21, 21-15, 16-14

Ku‘ulei Zalopany/Olivia Urban (UH) def. Haley Doerfler/Jamie Asuncion (HPU), 21-23, 21-19, 15-9