ASHLAND, Ore. – The Bushnell beach volleyball laid claim to their first trip to the Cascade Collegiate Conference tournament in two years as they earned a pair of victories on Saturday, beating Simpson University twice on the neutral sand of Southern Oregon University.
 
Head Coach Kim Elgarico said, "The girls all played hard this weekend and really focused on preparing for our last home match next week. We are happy to finish the weekend with a double sweep and to keep that momentum going."
 
The Beacons (8-11, 7-7 CCC) didn't drop a set during a dominant double-header sweep of the Red Hawks (0-18, 0-12), led by Olivia Kelzenberg and Jazmyn Wilcox who completed a 3-0 weekend at the No. 2 pair.
 
"We had a 'nothing-drops' mentality this weekend," said Kelzenberg, "and we worked to earn every point. We were able to work on our consistency and energy against Simpson."
 
Wilcox added, "We knew we had nothing to lose and the pressure wasn't on us, so we were able to play loose and have fun which is when we play our best."
 
The Beacons also saw the debut of two first-time pairings at the No. 5 spot and both were victorious in their debuts. This included season debuts for Bella Jacobsen (pictured, left) in the morning session and Avery Lenssen (pictured, right) in the afternoon.
 
Bushnell University 5, Simpson University 0
1. Kate Palelek/Hailey Hughes (BU) def. Kimora McKechnie/Brooklyn Jimenez (SU) 21-8, 21-11
2. Olivia Kelzenberg/Jazmyn Wilcox (BU) def. Tiara Manns/Emily Melo (SU) 21-13, 21-6
3. Monet Panther/Carly Hanna (BU) def. Elizabeth Heath/Brooke Sarahina (SU) 21-10, 21-17
4. Sydney Myhre/Laci Jespersen (BU) def. Kare Ann Oshiro/Mackenzie Tataryn (SU) 21-11, 21-18
5. Bella Jacobson/Haley Engelbrecht (BU) def. Sylus Moore/Alexis Andaya (SU) 21-14, 21-10
Ex. Avery Lenssen/Emma Nevarov (BU) def. Kiersti Howell/Caitlyn Miller (SU) 21-14, 21-11
 
Bushnell University 5, Simpson University 0
1. Kate Palelek/Hailey Hughes (BU) def. Kimora McKechnie/Brooklyn Jimenez (SU) 21-18, 21-19
2. Olivia Kelzenberg/Jazmyn Wilcox (BU) def. Tiara Manns/Emily Melo (SU) 24-22, 21-10
3. Monet Panther/Carly Hanna (BU) def. Elizabeth Heath/Brooke Sarahina (SU) 21-13, 23-21
4. Sydney Myhre/Laci Jespersen (BU) def. Kare Ann Oshiro/Mackenzie Tataryn (SU) 21-18, 21-14
5. Kailey Shirley/Avery Lenssen (BU) def. Sylus Moore/Kiersti Howell (SU) 21-7, 21-15
Ex. Emma Nevarov/Kaylee Dancer (BU) def. Alexis Andaya/Caitlyn Miller (SU) 21-17, 21-13
 
UP NEXT: The Beacons will close out the regular season on Tuesday when they play host to Corban University at 4:00 pm.