USF returns to the beach this weekend to co-host the Santa Cruz Invitational with Santa Clara University. The event marks the first collegiate tournament contested at Main Beach, long recognized as a mecca for sand volleyball on the Boardwalk.
Joining the Dons and Broncos in the field will be second-ranked Hawaii, along with teams from California, Cal Poly and Cal State-Bakersfield.
Team pool play action gets underway at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday while the pair's tournament will be contested on Sunday starting at 9:00 a.m. USF is pooled with the second-ranked Rainbows and Cal State-Bakersfield, while Santa Clara, Cal and Cal Poly make up the other pool. Three teams from each school make up 10 pools in Sunday's pairs competition. The top two teams from each pool will advance to the single elimination portion of the bracket.
"We are excited to co-host with Santa Clara who has been a great partner in planning such a historic event," said co-head coach Eyal Zimet. "We are looking forward to a beautiful weekend with great weather and amazing competition."
The Dons enter this weekend's event on a roll, having won four straight matches after beginning the season 0-2. Last week, USF downed San Jose State and Saint Mary's at the USF Invitational at Piper Park in Larkspur. The team of Jessica Gaffney and Sara Staengle delivered the decisive victory over the Gaels, giving USF its first win over Saint Mary's in sand competition.
USF has faced two of the opponents in this weekend's field already this season. The Dons dropped a hard-fought 3-2 decision to Santa Clara in the season opener and downed Cal, 3-2 on March 13 at Piper Park.
Hawaii, ranked second nationally behind USC in the latest AVCA Top-10 poll, improved to 7-1 on the season with Thursday's 4-1 win over Pacific in Stockton. Hawaii scored a 5-0 win over USF in last season's USF Invitational in Larkspur.
Following this weekend's action in Santa Cruz, the Dons return to action on April 3-4 at the Sacramento State Invitational.
Watch Saturday's Dual Match Action LIVE on theW.tv:
