Carson-Newman Holds Off Tusculum to Win First SACC Beach Volleyball Championship

DALLAS, N.C. (theSAC.com) – The top-seeded Carson-Newman Eagles captured the first South Atlantic Conference Carolinas Beach Volleyball Championship in history. The Eagles held off a late charge from Tusculum to win by a final score of 3-2 in Saturday's championship match. The Eagles put a stamp on a season that saw them go 10-0 in conference play and 2-0 in pool play.

Each team faced little adversity in Saturday morning's semifinal round. The Eagles topped Emmanuel 5-0 while Tusculum defeated Erskine 4-1.

In the championship match, Ava Fountain and Emerson Ahsmuhs put C-N up 1-0 from the No. 2 pair with wins of 21-10 and 21-12. Moments later, the Eagles advantage swelled to 2-0 as Trinity Hafey and Kylee Oldenburger clinched a 21-15, 21-11 win.

However, the Pioneers stormed back. After dropping the first set 21-10, the No. 1 pair of Brynn Smith and Hannah Marsh came back to win the final two sets 21-11 and 15-11. At the No. 4 spot, Kyla Oppenhuis and Landry Tea won 21-16, 18-21, 15-13 to knot the match at 2.

The clincher came at No. 5 as Kat Nelson and Addie Smith won the first set 21-18 but dropped the second 21-19. They faced a 7-2 deficit but rallied and clinched the victory with a 16-14 win.

The teams will await their postseason fate as the NCAA Beach Volleyball Championships take place on May 2-4 at Gulf Shores Main Public Beach in Gulf Shores, Alabama.

2025 South Atlantic Conference Carolinas All-Tournament Team

Brynn Smith / Hannah Marsh, Tusculum

Kyla Oppenhuis / Landry Tea, Tusculum

Ava Fountain / Emerson Ahsmuhs, Carson-Newman

Kat Nelson / Addie Smith, Carson-Newman

Trinity Hafey / Kylee Oldenburger, Carson-Newman (MVP)