LOS ANGELES – The Loyola Marymount University beach volleyball team will kick off its 2020 season against UCLA on Thursday, and will continue play against St. Katherine and Vanguard University on Friday. 
 
The Lions open their 2020 season coming off a West Coast Conference Championship that the team won in April after beating Pepperdine twice, the first win over the Waves in program history. 
 
The Lions kick off the season with a No. 8 preseason ranking, and will take on UCLA, which is ranked No. 1 after the Bruins won the NCAA National Championship. 
 
LMU welcomes 13 newcomers to the team, while boasting eight returners, including Jessie Prichard, who went undefeated at the WCC Championships, as well as Savannah Slattery and Reka Orsi Toth, the tandem that took down the No. 2 pair from UCLA last season. 
 
Last season, the Lions went 0-2 against the Bruins, but went 2-0 against Vanguard, sweeping the team 5-0 in both meetings. This will be the first time the Lions will meet with St. Katherine. 
 
The Lions will play their first match of the season at UCLA starting at 10:00 AM, and will then pick back up on Friday, as the team will take on St. Katherine at noon, and Vanguard University at 2:00 PM.