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Pac-12 announces beach volleyball awards

May 3, 2018
Al Sermeno/Pac-12 Conference

SAN FRANCISCO - UCLA junior Nicole McNamara was voted Pac-12 Beach Volleyball Player of the Year and is part of the duo that was voted Pac-12 Pair of the Year with her twin sister Megan McNamara, the Conference office announced today. USC’s Tina Graudina was voted the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year while UCLA’s Stein Metzger was named Pac-12 Coach of the Year for the second-straight year.

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The McNamara twins have posted a 31-7 record at the No. 1 pairs position this season, leading UCLA to its first 30-win season and first Pac-12 title last week. The Vancouver, BC, Canada, natives defeated USC’s top pair of Tina Graudina and Abril Bustamante in the championship dual to clinch the conference crown, 3-1. The McNamara’s 31 wins are the most of any pair in the country while leading the Bruins to their first No. 1 seed in the upcoming NCAA Championship. They were named Pac-12 Pair of the Week on March 20 and were voted to the Pac-12 Championship All-Tournament team last week. The duo is the first Bruin tandem to win the Pac-12 Pair of the Year honor and Nicole is also the first Bruin to win the Pac-12 Player of the Year recognition.

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Graudina has made an immediate impact on the Trojan squad, going 28-2 at the No. 1 position with all of her wins coming with partner Abril Bustamante. Since being permanently paired with Bustamante on March 3, Graudina put together a nine-match win streak and then a 19-match win streak, losing only to top pairs from Hawai’i and UCLA, both teams that earned NCAA berths. A native of Jurmala, Latvia, has helped two-time defending national champion USC earn its third-consecutive NCAA Tournament berth. She, along with Bustamante, were tabbed the Pac-12 Pair of the Week on March 27 and were named to the Pac-12 Championship All-Tournament team.

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For the second-straight year, UCLA’s Metzger is voted the coach of the year by his league peers, leading UCLA to the program’s first conference title, and first No. 1 seed in the Pac-12 Championship and upcoming NCAA Championship. The team has won a program-record 35 wins, winning a team-record 30 in a row, a streak they carry into the NCAA Championship this week. Suffering just three losses this season, the setbacks have been to teams ranked in the top five in the country and are participating in the eight-team national championship, their last loss coming on March 8. Three Bruin tandems were named to the Pac-12 Championship All-Tournament team after the Bruins defeated USC for the conference title, 3-1.

Pac-12 Player of the Year: Nicole McNamara, UCLA

Pac-12 Freshman of the Year: Tina Graudina, USC

Pac-12 Pair of the Year: Nicole McNamara and Megan McNamara, UCLA

Pac-12 Coach of the Year: Stein Metzger, UCLA

All-Pac-12      
First Team      
Abril Bustamante USC Jr. Redondo Beach, Calif.
Terese Cannon USC Sr. Pittsford, N.Y.
Tina Graudina USC Fr. Jurmala, Latvia
Lily Justine UCLA So. Chico, Calif.
Megan McNamara UCLA Jr. Vancouver, B.C., Canada
Nicole McNamara UCLA Jr. Vancouver, B.C., Canada
Mima Mirkovic California Fr. Irvine, Calif.
Kathryn Plummer Stanford So. Aliso Viejo, Calif.
Sarah Sponcil UCLA Jr. Phoenix, Ariz.
Courtney Schwan Washington Sr. Auburn, Wash.
       
Second Team      
Adora Anae Utah Sr. Punaluu, Hawai’i
Jordan Anderson Washington Sr. Flower Mound, Texas
Dani Barton Utah So. Sandy, Utah
Courtney Bowen Stanford Jr. Brooklyn, N.Y.
Haley Hallgren USC Fr. Southlake, Texas
Morgan Hentz Stanford So. Lakeside Park, Ky.
Destiny Julye Washington Jr. Tehachapi, Calif.
Iya Lindahl California So. San Diego, Calif.
Savvy Simo UCLA So. Rancho Santa Fe, Calif.
Sammy Slater USC Fr. Ventura, Calif.
All-Freshman Team    
Tina Graudina USC Jurmala, Latvia
Mac May UCLA Dubuque, Iowa
Mima Mirkovic California Irvine, Calif.
Sammy Slater USC Ventura, Calif.
Sunny Villapando Stanford Manhattan Beach, Calif.