BATON ROUGE, La. – The Southeastern Louisiana University beach volleyball team closed out day one of the Battle on the Bayou 2-0 Friday afternoon at the LSU Beach Volleyball Stadium.
Southeastern (14-10, 5-2 SLC) gained its eighth consecutive win on the road in its opening appearance of the annual Battle on the Bayou in Baton Rouge, La. SLU began the road test with a 5-0 sweep over conference rival Nicholls (8-17, 0-6 SLC). Pair five Genevieve Schubert and Elizabeth Hardouin kicked off the momentum for the Sandy Lions with a 21-10, 21-18 victory against the Colonels.
SLU continued to compound its momentum as Maggie Paiva and Mia McKinney secured a commanding 21-9, 21-11 win over Nicholls' pair two. The Colonels battled to cut into its deficit, but Emmaleigh Vincent and Carley Petty stepped up to claim its second straight win as a pair for Southeastern, 21-16, 21-17. The green and gold maintained its edge as Makayla Hicks and Cadie Kusy fought to earn a 21-19, 21-17 victory before Mia Sauers and Gabriela Hrubanova delivered the shutout with a 21-16, 21-14 win over Nicholls.
The Sandy Lions returned to the sand later in the afternoon to secure a tough 3-2 victory against New Orleans (10-12, 3-3 SLC). The Privateers' pair two came out to a hot start to open the match, claiming a 21-18, 21-18 victory with an early edge. Pair four Hicks and Kusy battled to regain control with a hard-fought 21-15, 25-23 win against New Orleans.
Southeastern maintained its composure to gain the upperhand as Schubert and Hardouin posted a 21-8, 21-15 victory. Petty and Vincent fought to extend SLU's lead with a 21-12, 21-16 win, but the Privateers refused to back down, claiming a three-set victory for pair one.
The green and gold will remain on the road, traveling to Florence, Ala. to compete in the North Alabama Beach Ball Thursday, April 16-17. The Sandy Lions will face Central Arkansas, Missouri State and North Alabama in its final regular season tournament before the 2026 Southland Conference Beach Volleyball Championship Tournament Wednesday, April 22-24.
Friday's Results:
GOLDEN SAND CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the Southeastern beach volleyball program are encouraged to join the Golden Sand Club. Lion beach volleyball alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letter winners.
All membership fees and donations to the Golden Sand Club are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern beach volleyball program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting www.lionsports.net/sports/2026/1/29/golden-sand-club.aspx.
SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Lady Lions Volleyball, follow @LionUpBeach on Twitter, @LionUpBeach on Instagram, like /SLUathletics on Facebook and subscribe to the SLUathletics YouTube channel.
