Beach Volleyball:#1 TCU Places Fifth after Losing to #2 UCLA and Loyola Marymount at the Center of Effort Challenge

No. 1 TCU Beach Volleyball went 2-2 over the weekend to finish fifth in the tournament.

Mac Walters | Apr 14, 2025

Anhelina Khmil celebrating a win during their 4-0 weekend. / GoFrogs

No. 1 TCU Beach Volleyball kicked off the Center of Effort Challenge with a split on the first day, defeating No. 12 Arizona State 4-1 before falling to No. 4 LMU 3-2. The Horned Frogs bounced back on Day 2, securing a 4-1 victory over No. 3 Cal Poly to finish the weekend in fifth place. Individually, Ana Vergara and Anhelina Khmil went undefeated, continuing their dominance throughout the event. With all that being said, let us get into the details of each set.

Day 1:

512. BVB 4/14 ASU. 4. 466. Final. 1

Final. 3. 2518. 4/14 BVB LMU. 2. 466

No. 1 TCU Beach Volleyball had a strong start to the Center of Effort Challenge, defeating No. 12 Arizona State 4-1 before falling to No. 4 LMU 3-2 in the second match of the day.

The Horned Frogs were led by four players who finished the day undefeated: Daniela Alvarez, Hailey Hamlett, Anhelina Khmil, and Ana Vergara. Their exceptional performances were key in keeping TCU competitive throughout the day.

Against Arizona State, Alvarez and Hamlett secured TCU's first point with a 21-13, 21-17 victory at the No. 1 spot. Sofia Izuzquiza and Allanis Navas were followed up by winning the No. 3 position, 23-21, 21-15. The match was sealed by Maria Gonzalez and Vergara, who clinched the win with a 21-13, 25-23 victory at the No. 4 spot. Khmil and Morgan Williams extended the match to a third set at the No. 5 position, ultimately earning a 19-21, 21-17, 15-10 win. With the victory over Arizona State, TCU moved to a 6-3 lead in the all-time series against the Sun Devils.

Against LMU, TCU continued to fight hard but ultimately fell short. Khmil and Vergara were the first to score for TCU, winning at No. 4 with a 21-17, 21-19 result. However, LMU took the No. 5 spot, with Kaitlyn Bradley and Olivia Clines losing 21-15, 21-15. Alvarez and Hamlett tied the match for the Horned Frogs with a hard-fought 27-25, 15-21, 15-4 win at No. 1.. LMU clinched the overall win at No. 2, where Navas and Izuzquiza fell 21-15, 16-21, 17-19.

Day 2:

4/14 bvb UCLA. 2. 466. Final. 3. 518

4/14 BVB Cal Poly. 4. 466. Final. 1. 2358

On the second day of the challenge, TCU bounced back with a 4-1 victory over No. 3 Cal Poly after a tough 3-2 loss to No. 2 UCLA. This victory secured a fifth-place finish for the Horned Frogs.

Vergara and Khmil finished the weekend undefeated with a perfect 4-0 record, making them the only pairing to remain unbeaten throughout the competition. They are now 14-0 on the season, continuing their dominance.

Against UCLA, Clines and Reeves opened the match with a 21-16, 21-18 win at No. 5. Vergara and Khmil followed with a 23-21, 21-13 victory at No. 4, but TCU faced difficulties in the following matches. Izuzquiza and Navas fell 21-17, 23-21 at No. 2, and Alvarez and Hamlett lost 12-21, 21-13, 15-12 at No. 1. Finally, Gonzalez and Konstantinova suffered a 21-18, 20-22, 11-15 loss at No. 3, allowing UCLA to take the win. With this result, UCLA improved its all-time series lead over TCU to 7-3.

Against Cal Poly, TCU came out strong, with Izuzquiza and Navas notching the first point for TCU at No. 2 with a 21-15, 21-12 victory. Alvarez and Hamlett extended the lead by winning 21-11, 21-13 at No. 1, while Khmil and Vergara clinched the match at No. 4 with a 17-21, 21-13, 15-8 win. Clines and Reeves closed out the victory with a 15-21, 21-18, 15-11 win at No. 5. TCU now leads the all-time series over Cal Poly 5-4.

After this weekend's competition, TCU's season record stands at 21-5, with 16 wins against ranked opponents.

The Horned Frogs will return home to host the Fight in the Fort tournament on April 18-19. The event's first match will be at 10:00 AM on April 18 against HCU.

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