This was not how the LSU Beach Volleyball season was supposed to end.

Less than a decade old, the youngest sport on the Baton Rouge campus had finally reached the pinnacle of being the top-ranked team in the country with a 12-2 record, having beaten previously top-ranked UCLA two out of three times, including in front of a NCAA-record (for an on-campus match) of 2,407 fans on February 29th.

“I guess the comforting thing from a sports standpoint is that everyone is going through this at the same time,” Tigers head coach Russell Brock said. “This is not a regional thing where there is a hurricane in Louisiana or an earthquake in California. We are in the same boat.

“Of course, we all understand the bigger picture. The reality of things is that there are way worse situations for people around us than we are dealing with in terms of losing a season. Our focus is to help people around us, then when we get through this situation, we will figure out all the details of everything else.”

Breaking the news to his team once the NCAA made it official with the cancellation of all spring sports because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Brock admitted that he grieved with his team on the end of such an amazing 2020 campaign.

“It wasn’t just that it happened, but that it happened so quickly,” he said. “There wasn’t even an opportunity to prepare for it and get organized. (The season) was here and it was gone. We didn’t really get to evaluate our season and honor our seniors.

“Our players actually went out to dinner together and did a funeral for the season. They physically went through that grieving process. You are talking about losing something that you have worked so hard for and think about what could have been.”

Senior Kristen Nuss, who along with her partner Claire Coppola, became only the third pair in NCAA to reach the prestigious 100-win plateau said while she was disappointed in how the season ended.

“Going into this season we knew we had the chance to have a memorable season,” Nuss said. “We knew that while training in the summer. We believed the goal of winning a national championship was in reach. Then you have the attendance record against UCLA, the top ranking in the country, its just amazing. But that night is something I will always remember.

“When we made it to number one, it was a feeling of accomplishment but not satisfaction. We weren’t done yet. That was not our only goal. When the season gets taken away like it did, that was a couple of tough days. It was very emotional, especially four our senior class. Nobody thinks a pandemic is going to end your athletic season. Of course, it was the right move for humanity to stop the season, but it still didn’t mean it wasn’t disappointing.”

Brock, like Nuss, pointed to the win over UCLA at home as the program’s arrival to the rest of the LSU fanbase.

“The season may not have finished but nobody can take away what this team accomplished,” he said. “That night against UCLA, you couldn’t draw it up any better. It was such a memorable night and shows how far this program has come. I was on the court and on the far end of the stadium and it was so clear how remarkable of a moment it was. I took my phone out my pocket and did a video of the whole stadium. I didn’t want it to end and not have memories of it. Truly a night to remember.

“Even after that match talking with the UCLA coach they told me that they were thinking about coming back next year but after that night he wanted to be pinned back into the schedule because an atmosphere and environment like that can’t be replicated anywhere else. That is something we will always be proud of.”

In terms of where things go from here, the NCAA is expected to finalize a plan to reinstate eligibility at least for the seniors of the spring sports. While that is not set in stone yet, Nuss shared her thoughts on if she does get the chance to return to play for the Tigers in 2021.

“We have been told we are getting another year and you can take it or not,” she said.

“We don’t any of the intimate details, but we have been told the seniors will get a year of eligibility back. I can’t see how I can pass up an opportunity to come back and wear the purple and gold again and fight for a national championship. That is what I have been dreaming for since I was a little kid. I don’t know how I can pass that up. That’s what I am leaning towards.”