Cuesta Women's Beach Volleyball program kicked off in a hurry, after a December announcement that the program was going varsity in Spring.  Luckily, the Cougars already had a home practice facility and a roster full of indoor players ready to join their teammates and Coach Whitney Meyer in the sand.  Four of those players returned for their second season and were honored before today's doubleheader for "Sophomore Day".  It was a big step for the fledgling program and demonstrated that Cuesta's "Sand Spikers" are here to stay. 

Sophomores Bailey Woodside and Madelyn Freeman both earned all-WSC Second Team on the beach last season, before enjoying historic seasons indoors last Fall.  In a demonstration of how Beach also helped the team on the hardwood, last Fall both were tabbed to the all-WSC First Team and attacked the Cuesta Record Book.  Woodside set new Cuesta records for career Kills and Aces, while Freeman did the same for Digs.  Fellow Sophomore Alexis Waltz came off the bench as a freshman in 2023, but last Fall, after a season of beach, she stepped in to the starting line-up as their Setter and was accorded all-WSC Honorable Mention.  The Cougars' fourth returner on the beach, Amelie Lo Jocano, still has one more year of eligibility indoors, but is currently the "Sand-Squad's" all-time win leader with 14 match victories.  

Unfortunately, after the celebration the Cougars dropped both of their matches on the day.  Cuesta lost, 3-2, to Moorpark in the opener, as the Raiders claimed two matches in the third-set tiebreaker.  In the nightcap, around noonish, loop-leading Santa Monica swept Cuesta for the second time in two weeks, 5-0.  Cuesta is now 5-15 overall and 1-9 against the Western State Conference.  They finish their regular season with another WSC twinbill against Glendale (2 PM) and Santa Barbara (3 PM) at the Ventura Harbor Cove Courts next Friday.