Hatters fight to the end, but fall short against No. 2 UCLA

Gulf Shores, Ala. -- The Stetson University beach volleyball squad's 2022 season came to an end Wednesday afternoon as the Hatters dropped a hard-fought battle 3-2 to No. 2 UCLA at the 2022 NC Beach Volleyball Championship.

The Hatters (23-17) battled through adversity early on as the No.3-seeded Bruins took a 1-0 lead after their win on court 3. The Sandy Hats continued to fight but dropped the second set on court 1 as UCLA took a 2-0 advantage.

The Hatters did not let the moment get too big as Noelle Weintraub and Karin Zolnercikova put Stetson on the board with a 21-18 win in set 1 and a 21-17 win in set 2. Almost simultaneously, Audrey Gauthier and Colene Hamilton knotted the match at two apiece on court 4 as the pair won set 1 23-21 and took set 2 21-19.

With the dual tied at 2-2, all eyes turned to court 2. ASUN First-Team honorees Anete Namike and Carolina Ferraris took the first set over Devon Newberry and Jaden Whitmarsh 21-19; set 2 then went to the Bruins, forcing a decisive third set. The third set was a back-and-forth battle as neither pair showed signs of letting up. Late in the set, the Bruins took a one-point lead and eventually came out on top over the Hatters pair, ending Stetson's end-of-the-year run.

"My hope is that this really just continues to transform them and build them. Obviously they're very young and they're very capable so I'm excited for what they're going to look like in the future and hopefully this will give them a taste of what they're capable of doing," said head coach Kristina Hernandez.

Stetson finished the year with a 23-17 overall record as the Hatters won their sixth ASUN title and earned the second ever automatic qualifying bid to the NE Beach Volleyball Championship tournament. The program gained two ASUN-First-Team pairs, earned ASUN Freshman of the Year, and one AVCA All-America pair.

"We can compete with the tops and we know we can. Hopefully we'll be back here next year."

About Stetson University Athletics: Stetson University's Athletics Program is driven by a shared purpose. It is what inspires, motivates and binds us together. More than a task, a reason for being. THE HATTER PURPOSE is to create and provide an experience of a lifetime through teamwork and relationships to achieve excellence. This purpose is achieved through five Core Values: Communication, Integrity, Excellence, Value People and Commitment. To learn more about the HATS program and our Core Values, visit GoHatters.com/HATS.

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