(Photo courtesy of Joe Fusco of jfactionphoto.com)
SHERMAN, Texas - No. 2 Southwestern rallied for eight straight points and erased a three point deficit to defeat No. 3 Colorado College in an epic five set thriller on Friday evening. Interactive Bracket | Official Website | Photo Gallery | Hannah Long (SU) Postgame Interview | Chandler Lentz (SU) Postgame Interview
The Pirates (26-8) return to the SCAC Volleyball Championship Game where they will take on Trinity University on Saturday afternoon at 4:30 p.m.
Colorado College (28-8) took the first set, 25-23, before Southwestern responded by taking the next two sets, 25-23 and 25-19. The Tigers would even it up with 25-20 victory in set four, forcing a fifth set.
The Tigers were up by as many as four and held a 9-6 lead over the Pirates around the midway point. Southwestern proceeded to go on a furious rally, scoring eight points in a row to go up 14-9 and eventually clinch the match, 15-10.
First team All-SCAC selection Kaitlyn Foster finished with 17 kills to go along with 26 digs. Fellow All-SCAC selection Macey Pool added 14 kills while Olivia Drummond picked up 11. Sydney Rochelle had 28 assists while Nikki Welch added 20. Defensively, Chandler Lentz added 22 digs while Pool and Welch had 17 kills a piece. Kirby Kincannon picked up five blocks on the evening.
For Colorado College, Courtney Birkett picked up 18 kills in her outing while adding 12 digs. Meanwhile, SCAC Player of the Year Abbe Holtze had 17 kills and 25 digs. Sarah Barker added 38 assists on the evening. Defensively, Sophie Merrifield was excellent with 39 digs while Julia Lawton had 21 digs. Glenna Yancey added six blocks on the night.
Colorado College will battle Dallas in the 3rd/4th place match at 2:00 pm. tomorrow. The Tigers swept the season series over the Crusaders, winning both games in straight sets.
Trinity and Southwestern will meet for the second straight season in the SCAC Championship Game. Last season, the Tigers erased a 2-0 deficit to claim the SCAC title on their home court in five sets. The two would meet later on in the NCAA Regional Semifinal with the Tigers coming from behind again to take a five set victory. The championship match is slated for 4:30 p.m..
