Preview: NCAA Tournament – TCU Athletics

GULF SHORES, Ala. – No. 2 seeded TCU will begin play at the NCAA Beach Volleyball Championship against No. 15 seed Georgia State at noon CT Friday on ESPN2 at Gulf Place in Alabama.  

The Horned Frogs, which are ranked No. 1 in the AVCA national poll, are seeded second, marking the third time in program history TCU has held that spot out of five visits to the national championship.  

This week is the third time that TCU has held the No. 1 ranking this season. The Frogs have remained among the AVCA top two since March 25. Their first appearance at the No. 1 spot was after downing then-No. 1 UCLA 3-0 in Baton Rouge, La. on March 29.  

The Sandy Frogs notched 14 postseason awards, headlined by Daniela Alvarez’s AVCA Collegiate Beach Player of the Year recognition. Alvarez also received All-American First Team honors, followed by Tania Moreno and Hailey Hamlett who received recognition to the Second Team.  

In the Big 12’s first year of sponsoring the sport, Head Coach Hector Gutierrez received Big 12 Coach of the Year honors, Anhelina Khmil and Ana Vergara received Big 12 Pair of the Year honors and Sofia Izuzquiza was named Big 12 Freshman of the Year. Izuzquiza’s award marked the fourth consecutive year for TCU to notch the freshman of the year accolade in their respective conference.   

Six Horned Frogs were selected for Big 12 All-Conference team: Alvarez, Hamlett, Maria Gonzalez, Khmil, Moreno and Vergara,  

The Frogs improved their record to 28-5, following the Big 12 Championship. TCU is 14-5 against teams in this weekend’s NCAA Championship.  

TCU is looking for its first appearance in the finals of the NCAA Championship. The last time the Horned Frogs made it to the Final Four was in 2023. TCU holds a record of 3-6 all-time in Gulf Shores.  

Follow Along  

Live stats are available for the weekend and can be found with the bracket here. Fans can also stay up to date with scores by visiting @tcubeachvb on X.  

All matches except the championship will be on ESPN2, the final match will be on ESPN.   

The times listed below are all in Central Standard Time.   

Friday 

Noon – Georgia State (live stats) on ESPN2 

Saturday 

11 a.m. – TBD on ESPN2 

2:30 p.m. – TBD on ESPN2 

Sunday 

10:30 a.m. – TBD on ESPN 

Scouting the Opposition  

No. 15 seeded Georgia State heads into this weekend with a record of 22-16 and its third straight Sun Belt Conference title. The trip to Gulf Shores is the sixth appearance in the NCAA Championship for the Panthers. 

TCU leads in the all-time series, 8-4. The last time the Frogs saw the Panthers this season, TCU won 4-1 on March 16.