SALEM, VA- In their first match to go to a fifth set since September of 2022, the Juniata women's volleyball stared defeat in the face and defeat blinked first as they pulled off a reverse sweep against the Hope College Flying Dutch in the NCAA Semifinals. They secured their spot in the NCAA National Championship, winning 3-2 (18-25, 22-25, 25-20, 25-15, 15-11) inside the Cregger Center on the campus of Roanoke College Thursday evneing.
The win confirms Juniata's third consecutive and 11th all-time appearance in the national championship, where they will compete for their fifth national title in program history.
The matchup against the Flying Dutch was a rematch of last year's national championship, in which Juniata swept Hope 3-0. This year, the story was much, much different.
Similar to their quarterfinal matchup, the Eagles took some time to gain their footing. In set one, Hope started the match strong, winning two points for every one of Juniata's, leading 4-8. The Eagles came within two points at 7-9 before Hope pulled away again. The Eagles weren't going to go down easy, though, and they came within two points again at 13-15, 14-16, and 15-17. Juniata made it close, but Hope found the right time to go on a crucial 2-8 run and the Flying Dutch came away with set one, 18-25.
The Eagles started set two on the front foot, and started to gain some momentum when their lead was at its largest at 11-7. Right then, Hope went on a 0-9 run, winning several long rallies and taking the sting out of the Eagle attack. Coming out of that run behind 11-16, it was going to be difficult for the Eagles to come back and win the set. Nevertheless, the Eagles gained ground quickly. They were back within two points at 16-18 and later came within one point at 19-20 and 20-21. Several points were decided by inches at the net, on the baseline, and on the sideline; the Eagles couldn't quite gain the edge on the Flying Dutch, and Hope grabbed set two 22-25.
The Eagles faced a tall task heading into set three, needing to win three consecutive sets to advance in the tournament. It was the biggest deficit they'd faced all season. Moreover, it was probably the toughest position they'd been in since their last loss on September 16, 2022, against Trinity University. In set three, the Eagles scored two points to answer Hope's two points early and tied the match 2-2. The match was tied again at 4-4 and at 8-8. The 8-8 tie came in the midst of a 6-1 run for the Eagles, where they took a lead that they wouldn't give up for the rest of the set. A 4-0 burst later in the set gave the Eagles a six point cushion up 20-14, and the Eagles looked much more comfortable, playing their game. Hope resisted toward the end of the set, but the Eagles made it 1-2, winning set three 25-20 on a Hope attack error.
Set four was the Eagles' strongest set of the night. They started the set on a 6-1 burst, and despite Hope's response to eventually tie the game 9-9 and 10-10, the Eagles continued their strong play. Hope gained their first lead of the set at 11-12, but Juniata quickly regained the lead to go up 14-13. From there, the Eagles only gave up two points in the rest of the set, ending it on an 8-0 run with a block by Audrey Muth. Set four went to the Eagles, 25-15.
Hope gained a quick 0-4 lead in the race to 15 points in set five. Juniata was going to need to respond. They chipped away at first, winning three of the following five points, and later winning three consecutive points to tie the game 6-6. The Eagles gained their first lead in set five at 8-7, and after the Flying Dutch tied it back up at 8-8, Juniata went on a huge 6-1 run to push for the win. Hope fought hard and brought it to 14-11, but Kennedy Christy spiked home the match-winning kill to send the Eagles into the national championship, 15-11.
Both Christy and Mackenzie Coley led the Eagles in kills at 15, while Muth contributed 14 in a strong performance as well. Olivia Foley added 48 assists, and Kiona Sky Rousset-Hernandez made 27 digs.
Juniata, sitting at 34-0 and winners of 96 straight, get a day of rest before they face #6 University of Wisconsin-Whitewater for the national championship on Saturday at 4:00 p.m.
