No. 2 beach volleyball chases history

No. 2 beach volleyball is on the verge of making history as the Trojans are one victory shy of becoming the first program to ever record 300 all-time wins. The Trojans have their sights set on this achievement as they head up to San Luis Obispo for the Center of Effort Challenge Tournament Friday and Saturday.

USC cruises into the final stretch of the regular season with an 11-dual-win streak, 14 wins over ranked opponents and a 21-1 overall record. USC added to their momentum at the Pac-12 Invitational this past weekend when they swept intradivisional foes Arizona State, Oregon and Utah, dropping just one match to Arizona.  

“We try to think of the season in little bits. We’re really proud of how we played in the past, but right now it’s just a new week,” said junior Delaynie Maple. “We’re going to take the past games as ways to remind us that we have the confidence and ability to [win], but remember that just because we won those past games doesn’t mean we’re going to win this weekend. We have to put in the work.”

The Trojans return to facing highly-ranked opponents as they’ll go head-to-head with No. 6 Loyola Marymount University, No. 4 Florida State, No. 11 Long Beach State and a fourth team determined by Saturday’s pool finish. The Trojans’ mindset and strategy remain unwavering regardless of the rising difficulty of their opponents.

“Everyone we play, we try to treat them the same. That’s our motto, ‘Respect the opponent,’” said Head Coach Dain Blanton. “By doing that, we play as hard as we can against everybody we play … Ranked or not ranked, we prepare for every match [similarly] and try to put our best foot forward every time we get out there.”

This tournament marks USC’s third and second dual against Long Beach and Florida State, respectively, this season. When facing opponents for a second matchup, the Trojans are 3-0, and USC’s average dual point differential increases from one to over four upon the latter meeting. Blanton stated that the Trojans’ extensive pre-game research facilitates their improvements in recurrent matchups.

“We do as much research as we can, we watch a lot of film, we want to learn tendencies. We try to capitalize on every little bit of information that we can get. That’s what makes our team effective, that focus and locking in on our opponent,” Blanton said. “We just try to learn more and more each time we get on the court.”

On the opposing side of the court, there are a few noteworthy players and teams. LMU boasts a 21-4 record, and the Lions are coming off a major 3-1 victory over Florida State. Meanwhile, the Seminoles are known for bouncing back after a loss. The Seminole pairing of sophomore Anna Long and graduate student Jordan Polo could pose a challenge as they earned CSSA Pair of the Week after the East meets West Invitational when they defeated duos from LMU, Hawai’i and secured the dual-clinching point to upset UCLA after narrowly losing a three-setter against USC.

Following the Center for Effort Challenge, the Trojans’ schedule tightens up. USC is slated to host a senior day dual against CSU Bakersfield on April 18 and compete in a double-header against UCLA and LMU on April 20. Despite the busy week ahead, the Trojans feel prepared to unleash their talent on the court.

“Everybody has been utterly relentless … going balls to the walls in practice,” Maple said. “We’re really excited and super prepared. We came into this week knowing that we only had four days of practice before our tournament, and we’re in a good spot.”

The Trojans will begin the Center of Effort Challenge Tournament against LMU at 12:30 p.m. Friday at the Swanson Beach Volleyball Complex.