SIOUX CITY, Iowa – There is nobody in the NAIA who can claim a 2022 National Championship semifinal appearance was a fluke, a one-off, or a once in a lifetime opportunity anymore, as the No. 8-seeded Corban University Women's Volleyball team led by head coach Kim McLain has now punched their ticket to the semifinal round for the second time in a three-year span, representing just one of two programs to do so since 2022. Earlier today, the Warriors took a first set 26-24 loss to the gut and used it as motivation to cruise by the No. 16-seeded Bulldogs of the University of Montana Western over the next three sets, taking set scores of 25-20, 25-16, and 25-22 thanks to some of their most efficient offense throughout the 2024 postseason. With today's victory, Corban improves to 4-2 all-time against the Bulldogs and are riding a three-game winning streak against their west coast foe.
"Montana Western was big and physical at the net, we knew we had to serve aggressively to keep them out of system, as they have many strong offensive options," Coach McLain detailed following her team's quarterfinal victory. "I am so proud of the way they stayed with the game plan and did not let up, focusing on one point at a time. I think what makes this team special is the way they play for one another, their determination, and grit! We are so honored and look forward to continuing this journey!"
Representing their first head-to-head matchup since the 2022 season when the Warriors (27-5) swept through the Bulldogs (25-10) in Caldwell, Idaho, both west regionally based programs entered the quarterfinal stage having exceeded expectations within their conference and national rankings, with UMW having upset No. 1-ranked and previously undefeated Northwestern College in their pool play finale while Corban shook off their three-set conference play sweep at the hands of No. 22-ranked College of Idaho and an intimidating 40-win Aquinas College program by emerging victorious from Pool H at 2-0.
The Navy and Gold held the early edge throughout the opening set and led 18-14 following a five-point run, yet the Bulldogs chipped away point-by-point to eventually retake the lead at 23-22 and five scores later, snagged an extra-point set victory at 26-24 to hold the early momentum.
Having gone up 1-0 in each of their past two opening sets played in Iowa, the Warriors responded aggressively in the second period with multiple scoring streaks, as 19 of their 25 set points would come via kills in a .319 attack percentage set. An egregious nine errors in the first set would be minimal for the remainder of the contest, committing just 12 more attacking errors between the second and fourth sets. After securing set point at 24-16, Montana Western managed to score on four-straight points before sophomore outside hitter Kendra Bittle ended the bleeding with a set clinching kill.
Despite allowing a service ace to start the third period while knotted at one set apiece, the Warriors rattled off six-straight points to force an early UMW timeout and eventually, their second time out just 14 points into the set as Corban held a commanding 12-2 advantage. Try as the Bulldogs might, the Warriors would extend their lead to as many as 12 points before eventually ending Montana Western's offensive skid at 25-16, a period in which the Navy and Gold held UMW to nine kills and eleven attacking errors for a -.053 kill percentage.
The fourth and final set was a game of runs between the two programs, with the Warriors finding themselves on the right side of the final four-point rally that provided them with the three-point lead they needed at 17-14 to trade side-outs a majority of the remaining chances for the Bulldogs to mount a comeback bid. At 24-20, Montana Western found some success via a kill and service ace to crawl to within a two-point deficit, yet a perfectly called timeout by Coach McLain relaxed the UMW server a bit too much, which resulted in the game-clinching service error for Corban volleyball.
The Warriors' three primary attackers all rose to the occasion today in their third contest played at the Tyson Events Center this week, led by sophomore outside hitter Emma Bischoff and her game-high 15 kills combined with 11 digs for her thirteenth double-double of the 2024 season, adding a pair of service aces along the way. Bittle and junior opposite hitter Makayla Roginski each tallied another 13 kills for the Corban offense, with Bittle's backcourt experience resulting in eight digs while Roginski dominated the net with two assisted blocks and a pair of solo stuffs.
Junior setter Abby Guindy and sophomore setter Nadeiah Howard were in full command of one of the hottest offenses in the NAIA, dishing out 29 and 26 assists, respectively, while combining for 20 digs in their backcourt duties. Guindy was responsible for 13 of those setter-digs, resulting in her seventh double-double of the year. Redshirt junior middle blocker Jadah Schmidtke and junior opposite hitter Kylie Davey added nine kills apiece off the set pieces from Guindy and Howard, with Schmidtke committing just a single attacking error in 16 attempts.
Sioux City has become the "home away from home" for senior libero Marissa Uehara, as the Kaneohe, Hawaii native nearly eclipsed her career-high mark in digs for the second-straight day by compiling another 32 in the backcourt against UMW, falling just one shy of her new career-best accomplished during their five-set victory over No. 9-seeded Aquinas yesterday in one fewer set played.
A 13-kill performance by Bulldogs' opposite hitter Jordan Olson kept Montana Western alive throughout each set, yet a team-wide .162 kill percentage for the match wasn't enough against a hard-hitting Corban offense. Outside hitter Jazi Smith secured an 11-kill and 15-dig double-double in her all-around duties, while setter Taylor Petersen dealt out 17 dimes and hauled in 12 digs for her own double-double effort. Libero Kelsey Goddard was the team-high digs leader with 22, while the Bulldogs distributed six blocks around to five different players.
Monday afternoon, the Warriors will face off against No. 5-seeded Bellevue University (31-4) in a must-see rematch from preseason play that will provide the winner with an opportunity to play for a coveted NAIA Red Banner, which will take place at 5pm CT/3pm PT at the Tyson Events Center and viewable for free online via the UEN/NAIA Network.
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