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Cal Opens Season With Sweep Over Oregon

Feb 26, 2021

BERKELEY – The ninth-ranked California beach volleyball team opened the 2021 season with a comprehensive win over Pac-12 rival Oregon on Friday morning at the Clark Kerr Sand Courts.
 
Cal won the season opener, 5-0, and outscored the Ducks, 210-111, across the five pairs on a sunny morning in Berkeley. Four Bears collected their first collegiate wins
 
"It felt really good to finally play a game against an actual opponent," interim head coach Derek Olson said. "I thought that we came out and looked better than I thought we would. I thought we might have more jitters and struggle a little bit, but they were quick to turn it around and they dominated. It was a good first day."
 
Maddie Micheletti and Ava Mann notched the first victory of the 2021 season as they downed Mia Lopez and Abby Plevin by a score of 21-10, 21-5. It was the 53rd victory of Micheletti's career and the first for Mann, a freshman playing in her first career game.
 
It was a similar story on the third court as senior Alexia Inman won her 55th career match and her partner Brooke Buchner secured her first career win. Buchner, a high-school All-American, played in her first match and the duo claimed a hard-fought 21-15, 21-14 win over Oregon.
 
On court four, Kate Bierly and Maya Gessner both recorded their first career wins. Bierly played last year, but only in Cal's exhibition pair, while Gessner is a true freshman. The duo was dominant in securing a 21-4, 21-9 victory over Bea Wetton and Batia Rotshtein of the Ducks. Overall four players entered the lineup, having never played in a competitive match for the Bears.
 
"It was a great start for our freshmen," Olson said. "I was very impressed with their composure, it didn't look like they had any more jitters than our veterans. I am really proud of how they came out and competed."
 
On the top two courts, it was business as usual for the Bears. Mima Mirkovic and Caroline Schafer claimed the win, 21-15, 21-12. While Jordan Polo and Ainsley Radell finished seconds later with the reverse score line, 21-12, 21-15.
 
Cal returns to Clark Kerr Sand Courts tomorrow for a matchup against UC Davis at 1 p.m. in what will be the final home game of the 2021 season for the Bears.
 
Cal 5, Oregon 0
#1 – Mima Mirkovic/Caroline Schafer (CAL) def. Savannah Siegrist/Carly Wallace (ORE) – 21-15, 21-12
#2 – Ainsley Radell/Jordan Polo (CAL) def. Madolyn Lafollette/Vivian Donovan (ORE) – 21-12, 21-15
#3 – Alexia Inman/Brooke Buchner (CAL) def. Delaney Hopen/Josie Cole (ORE) - 21-15, 21-14
#4 – Kate Bierly/Maya Gessner (CAL) def. Bea Wetton/Batia Rotshtein (ORE) - 21-4, 21-9
#5 – Maddie Micheletti/Ava Mann (CAL) def. Mia Lopez/Abby Plevin (ORE) – 21-10, 21-5
Order of Finish – 5, 3, 4, 1, 2