COLUMBIA, SC – A gutsy victory in the University of Tennessee at Martin’s opening match of the day secured a split for Skyhawk beach volleyball on Day 1 of the Palmetto Invitational. UT Martin collected a 3-2 win over Mercer in a match that came down to the final pairing before battling but falling 4-1 to tournament host South Carolina.
Four out of the five Skyhawk pairs claimed wins on the day, led by the match-clinching No. 1 duo of Olivia O’Keefe/Jenna Vallée in the meeting against the Bears. UT Martin’s No. 2 pair of Sydney Eckhardt/Dylan Mott and No. 5 tandem of Halle Everett/Haeleigh Paulino also collected victories against Mercer with the latter pairing up for the first time this season. Kayla Carrell/Reagan McGee represented the Skyhawks (10-11) at the No. 5 slot against the Gamecocks and prevailed for their co-team-best 11th win of the spring.
UT Martin defeated a good opponent in the Bears, who entered the match with a 16-11 overall record. After Carrell/McGee fell 21-14, 21-16 at No. 4, the Skyhawks evened the match at 1-all behind a 21-17, 21-17 triumph from Everett/Paulino. Eckhardt/Mott put the finishing touches on a dominant 21-9, 21-16 victory for their team-high 11th triumph of the season before Ryan Rednour/Addy Vaughn narrowly fell 21-12, 21-14 at No. 3. With all attention diverted to the No. 1’s, O’Keefe/Vallée dug deep for a 21-16, 22-24, 15-13 triumph to give UT Martin the win.
The Skyhawks were competitive in their second match of the day against a South Carolina squad playing on its home sand. Carrell/McGee came away with an impressive 16-21, 21-18, 15-12 victory early in the match to give UT Martin some early momentum but the Gamecocks were able to chalk up the remaining four wins. O’Keefe/Vallée fell 21-13, 21-19 while Rednour/Vaughn were defeated 21-14, 21-17 at No. 3. Eckhardt/Mott (21-15, 21-12) and Everett/Paulino (21-16, 21-5 at No. 4) also represented the Skyhawks in their second match of the day.
UT Martin’s four-match, three-day, two-city road trip wraps up tomorrow when the Skyhawks collide against UNC Wilmington at 8 a.m. CT.
