- Full Tournament Available Across ESPN, ESPN2, and ESPNU
- Up to 15 hours of Coverage Spanning Three Days
- Alternative Viewing Option: All Five Courts Streamed on ESPN3 Via the ESPN App
After reaching a multiyear rights agreement with the NCAA, ESPN will televise its first Division I Beach Volleyball Championship May 4-6, from Gulf Shores, Ala. This year’s field of eight consists of No. 1 UCLA, No. 2 Pepperdine, No. 3 Hawai’i, No. 4 Florida State, No. 5 Southern California, No. 6 South Carolina, No. 7 LSU, and No. 8 Florida International.
Day one of the double-elimination tournament will be available on ESPNU beginning at 10 a.m. ET with up to eight consecutive hours of beach volleyball coverage. Day two will be available on ESPN2 beginning at 2 p.m. with up to four consecutive hours of coverage, including the first semifinal (4 p.m.).
Day three begins with the second semifinal at 11:30 a.m. on ESPN2. Following the second semifinal, the championship will air on ESPN at 2 p.m. with presentation of the championship trophy available live on ESPN3 via the ESPN App.
Second-Screen Viewing Option:
In addition to the live telecast, action from all five courts during each dual will be available to stream individuality ESPN3 via the ESPN App allowing fans to follow a specific pair. Each stream will feature a fixed camera angle, natural sound, the score on that court and the scores of the duals taking place on the other four courts.
**Sample depiction of the second-screen viewing option.
All-Star Talent Line-Up:
Analysts
- Holly McPeak is a three-time beach volleyball Olympian who took home the Bronze Medal at the 2004 Summer Olympic Games in Athens, Greece. She is the third most decorated beach volleyball player with only Kerri Walsh-Jennings and Misty May-Trainor holding more titles.
- Camryn Irwin was a back-to-back First Team Pac-12 All-Academic volleyball captain at Washington State University. After college, she pursued a professional career in Austria, taking home silver in the 2014 Austrian Cup finals.
Play-by-Play
- Sam Gore is a veteran television and radio play-by-play commentator, contributing to NCAA Volleyball coverage for ESPN in the regular and post seasons. Gore also contributes to the network’s collegiate tennis coverage.
- Courtney Lyle joined ESPN in 2016 as a play-by-play commentator across multiple sports including volleyball, basketball and softball. Lyle’s contributions to NCAA Volleyball have spanned both the regular and post seasons.
Sideline
- Holly Rowe (Reporter) has been a prominent voice at ESPN since 1998. As a reporter she primarily covers college football, men’s and women’s college basketball, softball, NBA and WNBA. Throughout her time at ESPN, Rowe has also provided play-by-play commentary for women’s college basketball, softball, volleyball and gymnastics.
- Nell Fortner (Analyst) returned to ESPN in 2012 as an analyst for NCAA Volleyball, as well as college basketball. As a player, Fortner helped lead The University of Texas to its first volleyball national championship in 1981.
Features
In addition to the game action, viewers will also get an in-depth look at the teams and personalities that make the sport so special through a variety of feature pieces incorporated into the telecast over the three days. Examples include:
- Legend: In February, Pepperdine Head Coach Nina Matthies announced that she would retire after the 2018 season. During her tenure with the program, Matthies has amassed an impressive winning record and lead the team to post season events every year. Prior to her time on the beach, she was the Pepperdine indoor coach for 31 seasons leading the Waves to 20 NCAA tournaments.
- Back-to-Back: Beach Volleyball was added to the roster of NCAA championships in the fall of 2015. Since that time there have been two NCAA Division I Beach Volleyball Championships and the Southern California Trojans have won them both. Will they three-peat?
- Twinning: UCLA juniors Megan and Nicole McNamara are not only partners on the sand, they are sisters. . .twins actually. Numbers 31 and 13 respectively, the twins mirror each other in almost every way including one being left-handed and the other being-right handed creating a nearly unstoppable combination.
| Date | Time | Game | Network |
| Fri, May 4 | 10 a.m. | No. 8 Florida International vs. No. 1 UCLA | ESPNU |
| 11 a.m. | No. 5 Southern California vs. No. 4 Florida State | ESPNU | |
| Noon | No. 7 LSU vs. No. 2 Pepperdine | ESPNU | |
| 1 p.m. | No. 6 South Carolina vs. No. 3 Hawai’i | ESPNU | |
| 2 p.m. | Dual #5 | ESPNU | |
| 3 p.m. | Dual #6 | ESPNU | |
| 4 p.m. | Dual #7 | ESPNU | |
| 5 p.m. | Dual #8 | ESPNU | |
| Sat, May 5 | 2 p.m. | Dual #9 | ESPN2 |
| 3 p.m. | Dual #10 | ESPN2 | |
| 4 p.m. | NCAA Division I Beach Volleyball Championship Semifinal #1 | ESPN2 | |
| 5 p.m. | Dual # 12 | ESPN2 | |
| Sun, May 6 | 11:30 a.m. | NCAA Division I Beach Volleyball Championship Semifinal #2 | ESPN2 |
| 2 p.m. | NCAA Division I Beach Volleyball Championship | ESPN | |
| 4 p.m. | Trophy Presentation | ESPN3 |
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