ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Missouri State beach volleyball (11-3) won its final match of the first day of the Battle on the Bay Tournament at Baker Beach Volleyball Complex on Friday. The Bears defeated host team Eckerd College, 3-2, but fell to Palm Beach Atlantic Friday morning and Tampa early Saturday by the same score.

"This weekend was no easy task with tough competition, but we came ready to battle," head coach Ashley Emery said. "I'm so proud of the team and the growth we've shown. Every year, we get stronger, and it's clear in how we hold our own against these Florida schools. We're going to keep pushing ourselves to get even better. The grit and determination from every single person on this team is truly inspiring."

Palm Beach Atlantic 3, Missouri State 2

Palm Beach Atlantic (12-8) prevailed against Missouri State at the Battle on the Bay Tournament with a 3-2 victory for the second straight season. The Sailfish secured the first two flight victories at Nos. 2 and 4 before Missouri State's Olivia Rattler and Erin Eschleman got the Bears on the board at Flight No. 5 against Zoye Caroline and Angela Goggin with a pair of 21-10 set victories. 

PBA secured the match win at No. 3 with Abby Plevin and Annika Huhtamaki taking down Morgan Sprague and Maddie Schrandt, 21-17, 2-18. Florida native Becca Bach and partner Allyson Larkin won the only match that went to a third set. The No. 1 duo came back to defeat Anna Dunbar and Serena Baumgart, 18-21, 21-17, 15-11.

Missouri State 3, Eckerd College 2

The Bears continued their winning ways against Eckerd College (6-12), defeating the tournament hosts for the fourth straight year at the Battle on the Bay Tournament and improving to 4-0 all-time against the Tritons. Eckerd won the matches at the top two flights in three sets, but MoState swept its way through Flight Nos. 3-5 to the win. 

Sprague and Schrandt returned to the win column to snap a three-match skid with a 21-12, 21-8 result over Teagan VanderMey and Ella Kloepper. Rylie Cepicky and Manuela Niemeyer bounced back from their first loss of the season with identical 21-14, 21-14 set wins against Emma Samuelson and Mariana OlivaresCely. Rattler and Echleman secured the team win at No. 5 over Jocelyn Escoffery and Maddie Prois, 21-16, 21-14.

Tampa 3, Missouri State 2

The Tampa Spartans (9-8) improved to 4-0 all-time against the Bears and 3-0 against Missouri State at the Battle of the Bay Tournament with a 3-2 victory. The MoState pairs at the top two flights were felled again as Tampa won the third set in each, 15-2. The Nos. 4 and 5 pairs of Cepicky/Niemeyer and Rattler/Eschleman won their matches. Cepicky and Niemeyer swept Lauren Duke and Brooke Green, 21-17, 21-12. Rattler and Eschleman took down Sammie Ostrander and Meghan Schreck in three sets, 21-15, 16-21, 15-11. The only difference between Missouri State's win over Eckerd and its defeat to Tampa was the result at Flight No. 3. Madelynn Hokanson and Hailey Peterson swept Schrandt and Sprague with 21-17 wins in each set.

"My team faced a lot of good teams this weekend and came to compete," Rattler said. "I'm so proud of my partner Erin and I for pushing one another for those wins and our team for giving their all."

Tournament Notes

• Rattler and Eschleman went 3-0 at the Battle of the Bay Tournament at Flight No. 5, with sweeps on Friday against Palm Beach Atlantic and Eckerd College and a three-set victory on Saturday against Tampa. 

• Rattler increased her program career wins record to 54, while Eschleman's 33 wins ties Olivia Muriel for 10th all-time.

• Bach and Larkin's win against PBA moved Bach (47) one win shy of Brooke Plessner (48) for the second-most wins in school history. Larkin (36) is now one win shy of Schrandt, a fellow sophomore, for eighth all-time. Bach and Larkin are 11-3 as a pair this season.

• Cepicky and Niemeyer went 2-1 at the tournament to improve their pair record to a team-best 12-1. Niemeyer's career win total improved to 42, one shy of Steele for fourth all-time. 

• Schrandt and Sprague exit the tournament with a 10-4 record at Flight No. 3. Their win over Eckerd College moved Schrandt to one win behind Chloe Tome for seventh all-time.

"Big shoutout to our senior pair for not dropping a single match this weekend," Emery said. "Their hard work and dedication have truly paid off, and it showed in their performance."

Program Career Wins List

1. Olivia Rattler (2022-25) - 54
2. Brooke Plessner (2021-24) - 48
3. Becca Bach (2022-25) - 47
4. MacKenzie Steele (2023-25) - 43
5. Manuela Niemeyer (2023-25) - 42
6. Grace Cook (2020-22) - 39
7. Chloe Tome (2020-22) 38
8. Maddie Schrandt (2024-25) - 37
9. Allyson Larkin (2024-25) - 36
T-10. Olivia Muriel (2023-24) - 33
T-10. Erin Eschleman (2024-25) - 33

Up Next

Missouri State beach volleyball will spend the next week playing on campus at Betty & Bobby Allison Sand Volleyball Courts. The Bears will welcome Oklahoma Wesleyan on Tuesday at noon before Senior Day kicks off on Saturday against Southwest Baptist at 10 a.m. and Park (Mo.) at 1 p.m.