Missouri State University’s beach volleyball team will host the Beach Bear Bash tournament this weekend at Volleyball Beach Ozark in Ozark, Missouri. The event is scheduled for Friday and Saturday, with free admission for all attendees.
The Bears, who currently hold a 4-0 record this season, are coming off an undefeated performance at their opening home tournament. They have maintained a 30-match winning streak on their home sand since March 2023, when they last lost to Eastern Kentucky.
Missouri State will play Southwest Baptist and Eastern Kentucky on Friday, followed by matches against Central Arkansas and Lindenwood on Saturday. Live statistics will be available online for each of the Bears’ games.
The team began the season with three sweeps over McKendree, Eastern Illinois, and Central Arkansas and earned a 4-1 win against Lindenwood. Several players reached milestones during the opening weekend: Raylee Stenzel, Taylor Germann, and Jaycee Fixsen achieved their first collegiate beach wins; transfer Logan Kaneshiro recorded her first victory as a Bear.
All five flights have contributed to the early success of the team. The duo of Rylie Cepicky and Allyson Larkin remains unbeaten at Flight No. 1. Additional key points have come from pairings such as Raylee Stenzel with Maddie Schrandt; Manuela Niemeyer with Taylor Germann; and Logan Kaneshiro with Jaycee Fixsen.
Missouri State has developed a strong home record overall, standing at 46-3 in all-time matches played on its own sand courts. Their current streak includes victories over each opponent they will face again this weekend: they lead series records against Central Arkansas (4-2), Lindenwood (6-0), and Southwest Baptist (7-0). The only recent close contest was a narrow loss to Eastern Kentucky in March 2023.
Head coach Ashley Emery enters her fourth season leading Missouri State beach volleyball. Emery is now both the longest-serving and winningest coach in program history with a career record of 57-30 (.640). She guided the Bears to a school-record 26 wins in the 2024 season. Before joining Missouri State as head coach, Emery served as an assistant at Drury University—helping them secure their first Great Lakes Valley Conference championship—and spent time coaching high school teams in Oklahoma where she led several squads to state tournaments.
A native of Osceola, Missouri, Emery played indoor volleyball at Southwest Baptist University where she still holds school records for kills (1,156), attack percentage (.303), and points (1,419). She also competed on the AVPNext semi-pro tour from 2014 to 2016.
Missouri State joined Conference USA as an affiliate member ahead of the 2024 season after announcing its move in May 2023. Last year’s results included one win out of four matches against conference opponents during both regular play and championship events. The Bears are scheduled to compete again in the Conference USA Championship from April 24–26 in Youngsville, Louisiana.
