MARTIN, Tenn. — The No. 2 seed Chattanooga Mocs beach volleyball program saw its historic season come to an end during a 3-2 heartbreaker to No. 5 Jacksonville State in the inaugural Ohio Valley Conference Championship hosted by UT Martin in Martin, Tenn., on Friday afternoon.
 
Chattanooga finishes the season 8-11 overall following the loss. Jacksonville State improves to 4-8 overall and advances to face the winner of No. 1 Morehead State and No. 6 EKU later today.
 
"It's disappointing. It's not the end you want, obviously, but we have to take the good with the bad," said head coach Darin Van Horn. "It was a much-needed experience for our group."
 
Factoring in what was accomplished this season, Van Horn is excited for the future. And rightfully so. It was a season marked with firsts, accolades, and more importantly, direction.
 
"We had a historic season and I couldn't be prouder and more confident in the foundation we have set. I'm extremely grateful for my staff in Juliana [Yensho] and our entire support staff at UTC. We're building something special for years to come."
 
Trotting out the No. 4 and No. 5 pairs to begin the match, the Mocs and Gamecocks split the duos and carried a 1-1 tie in the top three pairings. Hanley Lomax and Abby Ashway picked up a 2-0 win (21-13, 22-20) as the four's while Madelina Myers-Osband and Makenzie Jordan fell 2-0 (21-18, 21-14) in the five hole.
 
The No. 2 pairing of Gylian Finch and Bailey Steger were the next to finish after cruising their way to a 2-0 (21-15, 21-13) victory to put UTC ahead 2-1 in the match.
 
In the No. 3 pairing, Victoria Cerino and Paige Gallentine dropped the first set 21-14 before batting back to extend the match to three with a 21-18 victory in the second. Cerino and Gallentine just missed clinching the match after falling 15-13 in the third following a 13-12 lead.
 
With the match tied 2-2, it came down to the No. 1 pair of Baylee Young and Jordan Krege. The duo took a 1-0 lead behind a convincing 21-14 win in the first set, but ultimately dropped the second, 21-19, and the third, 15-12, for the JSU match-clinching edge.

ELIMINATION MATCH RESULTS
JSU 3, UTC 2
No. 1: Kaylie Milton/Kylee Quigley (JSU) def. Baylee Young/Jordan Krege (UTC), 14-21, 21-19, 15-12*
No. 2: Gylian Finch/Bailey Steger (UTC) def. Katie Montgomery/Courtney Glotzbach (JSU), 21-15, 21-13
No. 3: Lena Kindermann/Erin Carmichael (JSU) def. Vic Cerino/Paige Gallentine (UTC), 21-14, 18-21, 15-13
No. 4: Hanley Lomax/Abby Ashway (UTC) def. Peyton Pauze/Macie Garrison (JSU), 21-13, 22-20
No. 5: Bethany Randall/Grace Jarnigan (JSU) def. Maddi Myers-Osband/Makenzie Jordan (UTC), 21-18, 21-14
 
Order of Finish: 5, 4, 2, 3, 1*

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