CHULA VISTA, Calif. – It took every pair result and a little luck for the lower seed in order for the No. 1 Corban University Beach Volleyball team (19-4) to fall in the Cal Pac Championship Match, as the No. 2 Westcliff University Warriors clinched their second-straight tournament title, not including their National Tournament appearance from last season.

"We knew it was going to be a tough match today against Westcliff," Corban Head Coach Diana Villalpando shared earlier today. "All year long, we've talked about how rankings are just that, rankings. You have to physically step on to the sand and compete, and Westcliff beat us today."

Villapando continued her analysis of the result this morning by saying, "I think at every level of every sport, there can be a small margin between schools on a skills basis. Anyone can beat anyone on any given day if the other team, or even your own, can be off their game by even a little bit. Hopefully we will get another opportunity to compete, as at-large bids are announced this upcoming week. Every team at that tourney will be good and within that margin, making it an extremely tough tournament."

When asked about how the tournament went overall for her program, Villalpando stated, "I'm proud of the way our girls carried themselves during competition. We were respectful and classy, and even though we didn't come away with the win, we know our character in who we are and how we want to treat others was never compromised by outside forces."

Both squads finished the day with three pair victories, as Corban's sixth pair of senior Tyra Ching and freshman Emmi Marks started the match with a decisive win over Westcliff's alternates, taking the two sets with 21-17 and 21-16 final scores.

The counting pairs in the first wave ended in a split for both teams, as Westcliff narrowly took the second overall duo with an 18-16 win in the third set, one in which the Navy and Gold held match point on two occasions. Senior Ally Schmidt and sophomore Jessica McMillian clutched out the fourth pair with a 15-9 win in their own third set, leading to a 1-1 match score with three pairs to go.

In the battle of the fives, senior Jolinn Daviscourt and redshirt sophomore Kalisi Latu staved off a first set loss to storm back from multiple deficits to take the pair in three, crushing scoreboard in the final set, 15-4, to give the Pacific Northwest Warriors a leg up overall, 2-1.

However, Westcliff was able to bounce back to take the third and first pairs in straight-sets, giving them the match and their second conference tournament crown in as many years.

That being said, this isn't the first time Corban Beach Volleyball has fallen to Westcliff in the Cal Pac Championship match, as the same 3-2 score repeated the year prior to this tournament in the spring of 2022. The Navy and Gold went on to beat this same Westcliff team in the NAIA National Tournament en route to earning the inaugural National Championship banner and first team title in Corban history. History is lining up to repeat itself once again in two weeks' time.

The full results from today's matchups can be found below:

Westcliff 3, Corban 2

1. Marine Kianna and Fiona Moesching def. Megan Dennis and Avari Ridgeway (21-12, 21-16)

2. Gionna Guinasso and Mia Scheepens def. Cameron Keeling and Kianna Keeling (19-21, 21-14,18-16)

3. Sabrina Galassi and Maddie Sheptson def. Maya Blake and Kealani Ontai (21-16, 21-15)

4. Ally Schmidt and Jessica McMillian def. Luise Palehczat and Rena Comer (21-19, 19-21, 15-9)

5. Jolinn Daviscourt and Kalisi Latu def. Brooke Scherdle and Leanna Zamora (19-21, 21-18, 15-4)

6. Tyra Ching and Emmi Marks def. Leonor Chambel and Chloe Johnson (21-17, 21-16)

Order of Finish: Doubles (6,4,2,5,3,1)

The No. 1-ranked Warriors will return to Oregon to host an invitational tournament for their reserve squad members this upcoming weekend, with details to be announced early next week. The program's starting pairs will next be in action on Monday, April 17th, for one final tune-up against NCAA DI University of Portland (5-8) before they anticipate an at-large berth trip to the NAIA National Invitational.

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