Jessica Ensign (left) and Nancy Moore (right) congratulate each other after a point in their victory over Israel. (Photo by Jason Chiou)
Women's beach volleyball gets mixed resultsby Leila Hanaumi on September 9, 2009 While the U.S. Men’s Beach Volleyball Team rested Wednesday, the women pumped themselves up for another day of spikes and digs in the sand. Jessica Ensign and Nancy Moore came into their game versus Israel determined to snag their first win. However, desire appeared absent in the beginning, as both U.S. and Israel made points only off each other’s errors. Neither team was hitting hard, but, rather, passed the ball back and forth at a consistent speed. It soon became obvious that Ensign and Moore were the better team as they handled the ball more expertly than Israel. However, they kept making errors of their own, causing them to repeatedly tie with Israel towards the end of the first set. The set went into overtime, and Ensign played smart by tricking Israel into thinking her hit would go out of bounds. The U.S. won, 23-21. A turning point in the second game came as Ensign made the first kill of the game and intimidated Israel into making three straight reception errors. From that point, the U.S. was on a roll. Israel couldn’t handle any of Ensign’s hits, and the U.S. women confirmed their first win, 21-11. “The previous teams kept giving the ball to my partner, but I finally got more playing time today,” Ensign said. Moore said she was happy to finally be able to deliver good news to her American fans. After the match, coach Lauren Mills congratulated her players and told them, “The moment you stopped making mistakes and started playing smart, you won.” While Ensign and Moore rejoiced in their first win, the other U.S. women beach volleyball team suffered a loss against Germany. Germany started the first set strong, immediately making six straight points until a fired-up Laurie Achin executed a block that stopped Germany’s run. Except for a few errors, Achin’s passes were sharp and spot-on, helping Stacy Nikiforov manage two hits in a row. Still, the American duo lost, 17-21. In the second set, Achin and Nikiforov improved their team chemistry and took the lead. The U.S. persisted in its efforts, and the game became heated. Nikiforov made an easy cut and tied the game at 16. A group of Taiwanese students who came bearing American flags became more involved in the game, shouting encouragement. Both teams continued to take turns scoring, and the set went into overtime. The U.S. and Germany were tied at 22 when Achin failed a pancake. Nikiforov then bumped a ball too far back, and Germany won, 24-22. “It was such a close game. The U.S. could really have won,” Canadian beach volleyball player Cole Sanderson said. Both women’s teams now have a record of 1-2. However, all is not lost. If they win tomorrow, they still have a chance to make it to the semifinals Friday. |
 Laurie Achin lobs the ball over the net in her match against Germany. (Photo by Jason Chiou)
 Jessica Ensign spikes the ball over the net in her team's victory over Israel. (Photo by Jason Chiou)
 Jessica Ensign (left) and Nancy Moore (right) congratulate each other after a point in their victory over Israel. (Photo by Jason Chiou)
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