Emerson, Ga. – On the third day of competition, the CCSA Championship came down to two matches on Sunday. Florida State (28-5) took down No. 16 Georgia State 3-2 in the semifinals before capping off their conference championship run with their fourth sweep of the weekend, 3-0 over No. 4 LSU. The win marked Florida State’s fourth consecutive CCSA conference title in four years of the conference’s existence.
“I am so proud and impressed of what the girls accomplished this weekend,” said head coach Brooke Niles. “We came in with none of the same pairs as last year and dominated all tournament long. What we accomplished is a testament to the work we have put in all season long. I am excited to get back and see what the next few weeks bring us as we head into NCAAs.”
Florida State started the day with a 3-2 win over Georgia State. Juniors Molly McBain and Payton Caffrey were the first Seminole duo done with a 22-20, 21-10 win on court four. They were followed up by senior Macy Jerger and freshman Kate Privett on court five. They won 21-15, 21-12 on court five.
Graduate Payton Rund and redshirt junior Sara Putt clinched their first match of the day on court three, 21-19, 21-17. With the match already in hand, Georgia State went on to win on court three 21-17, 21-16 and court one 18-21, 21-19, 16-14.
The Garnet and Gold then squared off against fourth-ranked LSU with the chance at a fourth straight CCSA title on the line.
Florida State jumped out of the gates hot to take four of five first sets. Eventual tournament MVPs McBain and Caffrey were behind 9-7 early in the first set before coming back to take a 13-11 lead and eventually the first set 21-16. They jumped out to a quick lead in the second set before capturing the win 21-11 on court four to give FSU a 1-0 lead.
Jerger and Privett extended the lead to 2-0 with a straight-set win of their own on court five. They went up 11-6 in the first set before extending their lead to 17-10. The Seminole duo took the first set 21-13. They fell behind 8-5 in the second set but took an 11-10 lead at the technical timeout. Jerger and Privett went on to take the second set and the match on court five 21-15.
After clinching the first match of the day, Rund and Putt did the same to clinch the conference title. They took a 3-2 lead to start the match and kept expanding their lead until they finally took the first set 21-12. They hopped out to a 7-2 lead in the second set before finishing off their opponent and the Tigers 21-15 in the second set.
Florida State now waits until Sunday, April 28th at 7:00 pm to see who they will play in the NCAA Championship in Gulf Shores, Ala.
#3 Florida State 3, #17 Georgia State 2
- Hawes/Delmonte (GSU) def. Alaina Chacon/Madison Fitzpatrick (FSU) 21-18, 19-21, 16-14
- Sara Putt/Payton Rund (FSU) def. Stasevich/Johnson (GSU) 21-19, 21-17
- Weiner/Novack (GSU) def. Brooke Kuhlman/Avery Poppinga (FSU) 21-17, 21-16
- Payton Caffrey/Molly McBain (FSU) def. Gordon/Tresham (GSU) 22-20, 21-10
- Kate Privett/Macy Jerger (FSU) def. McGinn/Dom (GSU) 21-15, 21-12
Order of Finish: 4,5,2,3,1
#3 Florida State 3, #4 LSU 0
- Alaina Chacon/Madison Fitzpatrick (FSU) vs. Coppola/Nuss (LSU) 21-19, 15-18, Unf.
- Sara Putt/Payton Rund (FSU) def. York/Agnew (LSU) 21-12, 21-15
- Brooke Kuhlman/Avery Poppinga (FSU) def. Rodriguez/Rasni (LSU) 16-21, 11-12
- Payton Caffrey/Molly McBain (FSU) def. Kloth/Ligon (LSU) 21-16, 21-11
- Kate Privett/Macy Jerger (FSU) def. Beyer/Domanski (LSU) 21-13, 21-15
Order of Finish: 4,5,2
2019 CCSA All-Tournament Team
Molly McBain & Payton Caffrey, Florida State – Pair of the Tournament
Macy Jerger & Kate Privett, Florida State
Sara Putt & Payton Rund, Florida State
Claire Coppola & Kristen Nuss, LSU
Ashlyn Rasnick-Pope & Toni Rodriguez, LSU
Lina Bernier & Erika Zembyla, FIU
Brooke Weiner & Kate Novack, Georgia State
