TALLAHASSEE, Fla.-- No. 18 Georgia State beach volleyball dropped a pair of duals to two top-10 opponents in the squad's season opener at Florida State's Seminole Beach Bash. The Panthers fell to No. 8 LMU 4-1 before stumbling to No. 6 Cal Poly by the same score.
Kelly Dorn and Meagan McCall shined in their debut as a pair. The duo defeated both of the ranked opponents in the No. 3 position.
In the morning session, Georgia State would drop both matches on courts four and five. Dorn and McCall put the Panthers on the board to place the team within striking distance. Eden Hawes and Maddy Delmonte, who placed ninth at the 2019 USAV Pairs Championship, fell in straight sets on the top court as LMU clinched the season opener. Despite having dropped the team score, Olivia Stasevich and Mattie Johnson continued to fight in the second position. The duo ultimately fell in a tight three-setter.
The Panthers looked to bounce back in the afternoon session, as the same five pairs competed for the blue and white. The dual would almost exactly mirror the first outing. GSU fell on the bottom two courts before the top three flights began. Once again McCall and Dorn would shine with their aggressive serves and continued ability to find holes in Cal Poly territory. The pair earned their second victory of the day to put the Panthers on the board. Cal Poly would clinch the team victory with a straight set result on court two. Hawes and Delmonte looked to rebound from the morning to find their first win of 2021. Despite taking the match to three, Cal Poly held on to add to their point total.
The Panthers are back in action tomorrow to close out play in Florida. Georgia State will face Tampa and CCSA competitor, Southern Miss. First serve is slated for 1:15 p.m. All matches can be streamed via Periscope. Follow @GSUBeachVB on Instagram and Twitter for more news and notes from the sand.
