Tallahassee, Fla. - The Stetson sand volleyball team (4-5) ran into some of the nation's strongest competition Saturday on the first day of the Seminole Sand Battle, dropping 5-0 decisions to USC and host Florida State as well as a tough decision to A-Sun foe FGCU. Both the Trojans and the Seminoles featured several players from their indoor rosters that reached the national semifinals of the 2011 NCAA Tournament.

Earning wins for the Hatters against the Eagles were the pair of freshmen Julie Bassett (Wadsworth, Ohio) and sophomore Kaley Melville as well as the team of sophomore Katie DiGirolamo (Bradenton, Fla.) and junior Alisha Hoffman (Leesburg, Fla.).

Bassett and Melville also played two hard-fought matches at the #1 seed position against the top pairs from USC and FSU, falling 22-20, 21-16 to USC's Sara Shaw and Geena Urango and taking Florida State's Aurora Newgard and Brittany Tiegs to three sets in a 21-11, 16-21, 15-6 decision.

Based on today's results, pairs will now be seeded into both single and double elimination brackets for tomorrow's final day of competition. Matches start at 9:00 am.

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Seminole Sand Battle

Dual Flight Play

at the Seminole Sand Volleyball Complex in Tallahassee, Fla. - March 24, 2012

Results

FSU - 3-0; USC - 2-1; FGCU - 1-2; Stetson - 0-3

USC 5, Stetson 0

Court 1: Sara Shaw/Geena Urango (USC) def. Julie Bassett/Kaley Melville (Stetson) - 22-20, 21-16

Bassett - 12 kills, 5 digs, 3 aces; Melville - 4 kills, 4 digs

Court 2: Natalie Hagglund/Katie Fuller (USC) def. Maren Rygh/Alexa Stonish (Stetson) - 21-14, 21-13

Rygh - 10 kills, 5 digs; Stonish - 10 kills, 6 digs, 3 aces

Court 3: Kelly Irvin/Kirby Burnham (USC) def. Alisha Hoffman/Katie DiGirolamo (Stetson) - 21-16, 21-7

DiGirolamo - 8 kills, 11 digs, 2 aces; Hoffman - 9 digs

Court 4: Kendall Bateman/Sam Hirschman (USC) def. Savannah Byl/Kaylee Ream (Stetson) - 21-11, 21-6

Byl - 9 digs; Ream - 7 kills, 18 digs

Court 5: Megan Thornberry/Kati Duddridge (USC) def. Taylor Story/Claudia Kalin (Stetson) - 21-4, 21-12

Kalin - 3 kills; Story - 7 kills, 2 digs

FSU 5, Stetson 0

Court 1: Aurora Newgard/Brittany Tiegs (FSU) def. Julie Bassett/Kaley Melville (Stetson) - 21-11, 16-21, 15-6

Bassett - 6 kills, 2 aces; Melville - 15 kills, 6 digs

Court 2: Jekaterina Stepanova/Jace Pardon (FSU) def. Maren Rygh/Alexa Stonish (Stetson) - 21-12, 21-9

Rygh - 8 kills, 4 digs; Stonish - 7 kills, 6 digs

Court 3: Visnja Djurdjevic/Melanie Pavels (FSU) def. Savannah Byl/Kaylee Ream (Stetson) - 21-7, 21-10

Byl - 4 kills, 9 digs; Ream - 1 kill, 4 digs, 1 ace

Court 4: Stephanie Pellitteri/Mallory Kiley (FSU) def. Claudia Kalin/Taylor Story (Stetson) - 21-16, 21-12

Kalin - 9 kills, 10 digs, 1 ace; Story - 6 kills, 7 digs, 1 ace

Court 5: Jeassica McGregor/Caitlin Haworth (FSU) def. Ashley Rutherford/Stephanie Marin (Stetson) - 21-12, 21-10

Marin - 7 kills, 8 digs, 2 aces; Rutherford - 1 dig, 1 ace

FGCU 4, Stetson 1

Court 1: Karina Mambuca/Holly Youngquist (FGCU) def. Maren Rygh/Alexa Stonish (Stetson) - 14-21, 21-16, 16-14

Rygh - 13 kills, 8 digs, 2 aces; Stonish - 14 kills, 8 digs

Court 2: Julie Bassett/Kaley Melville (Stetson) def. Kaitlin Holm/Jill Hopper (FGCU) - 21-13, 21-12

Bassett - 10 kills, 12 digs, 3 aces; Melville - 6 kills, 8 digs, 5 aces

Court 3: Brooke Kohler/Brittany Muse (FGCU) def. Alisha Hoffman/Katie DiGirolamo (Stetson) - 14-21, 21-17, 15-13

Hoffman - 8 kills, 9 digs, 2 aces; DiGirolamo - 16 kills, 18 digs, 3 aces

Court 4: Lindsey Childs/Olivia Mesner (FGCU) def. Savannah Byl/Kaylee Ream (Stetson) - 14-21, 21-10, 15-12

Byl - 11 kills, 12 digs, 1 ace; Ream - 17 kills, 23 digs, 3 aces

Court 5: Gigi Meyer/Whitney Masters (FGCU) def. Taylor Kennedy/Claudia Kalin (Stetson) - 21-17, 21-19

Kalin - 8 kills, 4 digs, 1 ace; Kennedy - 8 kills, 3 digs; 2 aces