The College of Charleston beach volleyball team concluded its 2026 season at the Sun Belt Championship in Foley, Alabama on April 24.
The event marked the end of a challenging campaign for the Cougars, who finished with an overall record of eight wins and twenty-one losses. The team faced tough competition in the tournament, first losing to University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW) by a score of 4-1 on Thursday. Fiona North and Grace Toscano secured Charleston’s only win during that match, winning on court five against UNCW’s Keenan Engebretson and Traci Shrcok with scores of 21-18 and 21-15.
In their next match in the contenders bracket, Charleston was defeated by Southern Miss with a score of 5-0. Despite competitive efforts across several courts—including close matches from Ella Duffner and Alivia Newberg as well as Madison Loving and Sophie Sageer—the Cougars were unable to secure a win in this round.
Match details show that Charleston’s pairings faced strong opponents throughout both matches. Paige Clark and Harleigh King competed at court one in both contests but fell to their counterparts from UNCW (21-9, 21-9) and Southern Miss (21-18, 21-16). Other Cougar pairs also battled through tightly contested sets but ultimately came up short against higher-seeded teams.
With this result, the College of Charleston closes out its beach volleyball season having gained experience against conference rivals. The team will look ahead to future seasons aiming for improvement based on lessons learned during this year’s championship.
