Gators Conclude Successful Fiesta on Siesta Key
Saturday, April 18, 2009 | Volleyball
Four Florida teams won their pools Saturday to highlight a successful day by the Gator volleyball team at the second-annual Southeastern Conference Coaches Beach Volleyball Championships as part of the Fiesta on Siesta Key on a beautiful day in Siesta Key, Fla.
Each of the 11 schools in the SEC (Vanderbilt does not sponsor volleyball) sent at least one team to participate in the event, while a handful of schools from several other conferences competed in the Collegiate Beach Volleyball Challenge. More than 20 schools participated in the Fiesta on Siesta Key.
“Today was a great day of beach volleyball,” Florida head coach Mary Wise said. “The weather couldn't have been better and it was great to see how much better the play around the league has gotten this year compared to last year. It was a great experience for everyone involved.”
Ten Florida athletes participated in the event, led by junior libero Elyse Cusack (Melrose, Fla.) and redshirt freshman outside hitter Kristy Jaeckel (Littleton, Colo.) who finished second overall in the Gold Division. The teams of Kelly Murphy (Wilmington, Ill.) and Colleen Ward (Naperville, Ill.); Betsy Smith (Atlanta, Ga.) and Cindy Bathelt (Colorado Springs, Colo.); and Lauren Bledsoe (Long Beach, Calif.) and Erin Fleming (Orlando, Fla.) all won their pools during the pool play round.
Beach volleyball was introduced to the collegiate scene by CBS College Sports Network with the Collegiate Nationals, an original event founded by the Network in the spring of 2006. That event is now in its fourth season. The coaches of the Southeastern and the Sunshine State Conferences followed with their beach tournaments in the spring of 2008.
The popularity of those events along with others that sprang up spontaneously around the country helped lead to the NCAA's Committee on Women's Athletics to recommend in the summer of 2008 that Sand Volleyball be added to the emerging sports list for women. Representatives from NCAA Division I and II will vote on that proposal later this month.
For complete results and more information on the event, please log on to www.fiestaonsiestakey.com.
The University of Florida is home of the 2009 NCAA Volleyball Regionals. For more information on Gator Volleyball, log on to www.GatorZone.com.
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