Arizona sand volleyball spent the weekend up in Tempe to compete in the ASU Sand Challenge and faced off against rival ASU, as well as CSU Bakersfield and New Mexico.

The Wildcats took to the sand on Friday to take on the Sun Devils, who they defeated 4-1.

Arizona’s No. 1 team of Madi Kingdon and Kaitlyn Leary defeated ASU in two close sets, 21-19, 23-21. Madison and McKenna Witt, Arizona’s No. 2 team, had an easier time downing the Sun Devils, winning their match 21-10, 21-14.

ASU was no match for the Wildcats’ No. 3 team of Rachel Rhoades and Kendall Polan, as the Wildcats dominated in a straight set victory, 21-12, 21-16.

The Wildcats’ only loss on Friday came from Arizona’s No. 4 team of Allie Cook and Taylor Arizobal, who were defeated in two close sets, 19-21, 19-21.

Sarah Seiber and Hailey Devlin of Arizona’s No. 5 team finished up with another victory against ASU, 21-14, 21-11.

Saturday brought on two matches for the Wildcats. First up was a matchup between Arizona and CSU Bakersfield.

Arizona swept CSU Bakersfield and took home a 5-0 victory.

Madison and McKenna Witt took over as Arizona’s No. 1 team for the day and defeated Bakersfield, 21-9, 21-15. Kingdon and Leary, now at the No. 2 spot, gained their victory in similar fashion, defeating Bakersfield 21-9, 21-15.

Rhoades and Polan took down Bakersfield, 21-18, 21-10. Meanwhile, Cook and Arizobal pulled out their only win of the weekend in a 21-17, 21-10 victory over Bakersfield.

Taking over at the No. 5 spot, Olivia Macdonald and Taylor Lane went to three hard-fought sets against Bakersfield but ultimately gained the win, 26-24, 18-21, 15-1.

To end the competition, Arizona took on New Mexico, which it defeated the previous weekend in a two-day matchup at home.

This weekend’s match ended with a similar result as the previous meeting between the teams — that is, with an Arizona victory (4-1).

Madison and McKenna Witt continued to dominate on the sand, defeating New Mexico 21-13, 21-14. Kingdon and Leary also exerted their dominance over the Lobos in a straight set victory, 21-16, 21-11.

Rhoades and Polan won both of their sets against New Mexico; one was a close finish (21-19), and the other was far from that (21-9). Cook and Arizobal suffered another defeat this weekend, losing to New Mexico 17-21, 14-21.

Seiber and Devlin were back in for Arizona and picked up a 21-7, 21-15 win against New Mexico.

After the two days of play, Arizona was named the ASU Sand Challenge Champion.

Next up for Arizona is the Pac-12 Conference Invitational in Santa Monica, Calif., from April 18-19, where the Wildcats look to continue their winning streak.

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