TCU Beach Volleyball: Volley Of Fire

For the first time in program history, the Horned Frogs have received Pairing, Freshman, and Coach of the Year honors, as determined by the Costal Collegiate Sports Association. All in all, the CCSA lauded the TCU Beach Volleyball team with seven postseason awards, also a program record.

Head Coach Hector Gutierrez was named Coach of the Year for the first time in his career. Under Gutierrez's leadership, the Frogs enjoyed the best record in program history, 36-2, and had a perfect 13-0 record at home this season. Additionally, and equally impressive, TCU can boast having bested 20 ranked opponents, tallying 15 sweeps.

Sophomores Daniela Alvarez and Tania Moreno claimed two postseason honors, including their first Pairing of the Year and their second consecutive naming to the All-Conference Team.

Alvarez and Moreno proved particularly estimable. Before the 2022 season began, both were individually recognized with preseason CCSA All-Conference awards, and they didn't disappoint. For the second time in their careers, they were granted both CCSA and AVCA Player of the Week honors after their season debuts (Feb. 26-27). Playing all their matches from a No. 1 position, the duo managed 23 victories on the season, 11 of which came at the expense of ranked opponents. Among their most notable successes were their wins over No. 1 UCLA, No. 4 Florida State, No. 4 LSU, No. 8 Cal Poly, and No. 9 Hawaii.

Additional to the Alvarez and Moreno pairing, Sophomore Maria Gonzalez and Freshman Ana Vergara were also named to the CCSA All-Conference team--for the first time in their respective careers.

Tied for the best TCU record this season, 27-4, Gonzales and Vergara proved worthy of all accolades from the season's inception. They enjoyed a 9-game winning streak, with eight over ranked opponents, including No. 3 FSU, No. 8 Cal Poly, No. 9 Hawaii and No. 10 California. Through the regular season, they tallied 18 ranked victories, with a 7-2 record over top five opponents. In the third set they have performed almost perfectly, with a record of 11-2, the best in program history.

Vergara alone received two other awards, Freshman of the Year and All-Freshman team. She is the first member of the TCU Beach Volleyball team in program history to have been named Freshman of the Year.

Her college career began with two Top-9 finishes at the U19 and U21 World Championships, representing team Spain alongside her TCU teammate, Moreno. She started her first TCU season with a 10-match win streak, including eight victories over ranked opponents, including No. 3 FSU, No. 8 Cal Poly, No. 9 Hawaii and No. 10 California. Her concluding record for the season was 28-4, with 18 ranked victories. She posted a 7-2 record over top five opponents. With a 12-2 record in three-set matches, she proved nearly perfect, and can pride herself on the best record of any Horned Frog in program history.

Alongside Vergara, Hailey Hamlett was also accorded All-Freshman honors, constituting the second time in program history two players were selected to the All-Freshman team (the first was last season, with Alvarez and Moreno).

Hamlett proved a natural, collecting an AVCA Junior Beach All-American honor upon her coming to TCU. Not one to disappoint, she received the CCSA Pair of the Week, along with her partner Alexis Filippone, for their performance at the Horned Frog challenge (March 4-5)--it was only her second week with the program. Hamlett finished her season with a 21-8 record, playing most matches from the No. 2 or 3 position. She boasts 12 ranked victories, over No. 3 Florida State, No. 4 Loyola Marymount, No. 6 LSU and No. 9 Stanford.

Next Up: The Horned Frogs are playing in the CCSA Conference Tournament this weekend. On Thursday afternoon, they defeated Tulane 5-0 in the quarterfinals. They play Florida State in the semifinals Friday at 12:30 (CT). The tournament will be held in Huntsville, Ala.

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