The list of teams competing in the AVCA National sand volleyball tournament seems like a who’s who of dreamy campuses near sun and surf: USC, Long Beach State, Hawaii, etc.
And then there’s land-locked Georgia State, a campus of concrete, asphalt and glass with a sliver of sand that is its sand volleyball team’s home court, tucked between high-rise buildings.
But the Panthers have overcome a lack of natural environs to go 18-1 this year in just the program’s third year to receive an invitation to the finals in Gulf Shores, Ala. Georgia State, the fifth seed, will take on defending champ Pepperdine, the fourth seed, on Friday.
“It’s very, very exciting,” coach Beth Van Fleet said. “It’s certainly been a big goal of ours since day one. With more and more schools playing, the competition gets tougher every year.”
There are 50 college teams that compete in sand volleyball, which will be officially recognized as an NCAA sport next year.
Eight were invited to compete in this year’s national championship. The tournament will last two days, Friday and Saturday.
Each school fields five doubles teams ranked in order and will play the opponent’s corresponding pair. The team that wins three of the five matches will advance to the next round. Staying in the winner’s bracket requires four wins to make it to the championship match. Going through the consolation bracket will require six wins.
With that many possible matches over two days, depth will be important. Depth happens to be one of Georgia State’s strengths.
Georgia State’s top five pairs have winning records, led by Sara Olivova and Jansen Button, who are 23-11 this year playing at Nos. 1-3.
“All of us, especially the girls that started this, have been looking to this for such a long time,” said Olivova, a junior who is one of several players who were on the inaugural team. “Our goal was to get to nationals, but now we want to show all of them what we got in Gulf Shores.”
Georgia State’s other strength may be one of the things that makes it unique compared to the other schools: because of its court’s location between buildings near the GSU Sports Arena, the team is used to practicing in the swirling winds that are expected in Gulf Shores.
Winds can affect everything from the toss on the serve to the set for potential spikes. Communication is key and the players are used to talking about winds and dealing with them.
“When it’s you against one team it’s one style,” Van Fleet said. “When it’s you against the wind and against another team it’s another style.”
While they are used to wind, they aren’t as used to the height the expect to see in the tournament.
Georgia State doesn’t have a player taller than 5-11. Pepperdine has eight players who are at least 6 feet tall.
Overcoming that disadvantage will require quick ball movement and varying the point of attack. Georgia State also plays a defensive style in which it tries to make the other team make a great player, rather than a gambling one that can lead to giving up easy points.
The Panthers don’t seem to be intimidated about being the one thing that doesn’t look like the others in the tournament.
“We feel like we belong there,” junior Katelyn Rawls said. “We’ve put in the time and effort and want to make sure we show that we belong there. We’ll go in with confidence, knowledge and willpower.”
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