Beach volleyball was one of the most popular and exciting sports at the 2012 London Olympics and the sport they call sand volleyball is now a growing NCAA women's sport.
Georgia State University is one of the 28 universities fielding a sand volleyball team in 2013 and they drew quite a crowd to their first home meet ever, on Tuesday in Atlanta.
What made the day even better for the Panther faithful was a 3-2 win over instate rival Mercer.
Almost 1000 fans packed the brand new Georgia State Sand Volleyball Complex to witness history.
"The crowd was outstanding," Georgia State head coach Tami Audia said after the match.
Mercer started quickly against GSU by taking the No. 5 match (21-11 and 21-19) and also the No. 4 match (24-22 and 21-17). GSU would have to win the remaining three pairs to win the meet.
Things started getting back on track when GSU's No. 1 team of Lane Carico and Katie Madewell got GSU in the win column worth a 21-16, 21-4 win to remain unbeaten on the season at 4-0.
GSU's No. 3 of Kaitlynn Rawls and Milani Pickering cruised to a 22-20, 21-7 victory.
It then came down to court two. GSU's No. 2 duo of Sara Olivova and Jansen Button came through with a close 21-16 win and then a march-winning 21-14 decision.
The other star of the match was the brand new facility in the heart of Downtown Atlanta. Three sand volleyball courts, palm trees, plenty of great seats and a great turnout of students made the 60 degree day in Atlanta perfect.
More than an inch of rain hit the courts on Monday, but it sure looked pristine on Tuesday.
"Facilities did a great job setting up and maintaining the courts all night, and the marketing people did a wonderful job of getting the word out and getting people to come," complemented Audia.
You've heard the saying "a jewel in the desert", well this is a desert jewel in Downtown Atlanta.
GSU next has home matches the first weekend in April.
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