Fort Wayne, Ind. - After dropping a two-point first set in Friday night (Nov. 10) WHAC semifinals, the Aquinas women's volleyball team came roaring back to take the final three sets in convincing fashion. With a 3-1 victory over Siena Heights, the 31-win Aquinas Saints will play for the WHAC Championship on Saturday afternoon (Nov. 10).
It was the third meeting of the season between the two Saints teams, with Aquinas ending up on the winning end of every contest. AQ won the first meeting in five sets and won both the second and third matchups by 3-1 triumphs.
Friday's victory came by scores of 23-25, 25-21, 25-17, and 25-19. Second-seeded AQ improves to 31-7 on the year and will face off with top-seeded Indiana Tech in Saturday's championship. Third-seeded Siena Heights sees its season likely end with a 24-8 record.
Aquinas was far more efficient and effective on the offensive end, hitting .176 with 48 kills. Siena Heights hit just .026 for the match (including three sets of .000 for equal kills and errors) and totaled 38 kills, but 34 errors.
After trailing 9-3 in the first set, AQ rallied back to tie the score at 13-13 after back-to-back blocks from Lauren Chioini and Abbi Perkins. Siena Heights pulled ahead at 20-16 and Aquinas couldn't knot the score the rest of the set, getting as close as one point on three different occasions. A service error ended the set and gave SHU the tight 25-23 first set victory.
The second set was tied at 10-10, but Siena Heights posted a huge 9-3 run to open a comfortable 19-13 cushion. With their backs to the walls, AQ fought back and scored seven consecutive points. Samee Teachworth totaled three kills and combined with Lydia Harper for a tying block during the run to put Aquinas on top, 20-19. After the other Saints tied the score at 20-20, Jenna Lee sandwiched a pair of kills around a kill from Lauren Chioini for the 23-20 edge. Another Chioini kill and an SHU error allowed Aquinas to complete the comeback with a stunning 12-2 run.
Set three saw AQ holding a slim 17-16 advantage, but just like the second set, the maroon Saints used a huge surge to close the set. Aquinas scored eight of the final nine points - with Siena Heights only scoring on an AQ error - as Harper notched two kills, Lee and Teachworth each added one, and Jordyn Carlyle served an ace during the run. Aquinas took the set 25-17 and led the match 2-1.
Siena Heights held fourth set leads of 7-3 and 14-9, but AQ chipped away at the deficit in an attempt to avoid a fifth frame. Kills from Jeralyn Hoppes, Harper, and Teachworth made it a 16-14 score. SHU was in front 18-15, when Aquinas used another huge 10-1 run to end the match. Strong serving from Johnson and Julia Schweihofer were pivotal during the spurt, with Chioini and Teachworth collecting two kills apiece. Perkins and Teachworth - the two All-WHAC First Team seniors - teamed up for a victorious match-ending combined block.
Aquinas used stunning runs of 12-2, 8-1, and 10-1 to finish the second, third, and fourth sets.
Chioini (.320, five block assists) and Teachworth (.300, four blocks) each posted match-highs of 12 kills. Harper collected 34 assists, 17 digs, and seven kills with just one error in 21 attempts.
Lee tallied seven digs and six kills, while Perkins notched six block assists and five kills. Carlyle and Chloe Hogarth each picked up a dozen digs, with Carlyle serving three of AQ's six aces. Johnson added nine digs.
The Saints turn their attention to Indiana Tech on its home floor on Saturday afternoon at 2:00 p.m. for the 2023 WHAC Championship between the league's top two seeds. With Indiana Tech's victory over Madonna in the other semifinal and AQ advancing to the championship match, both teams have earned automatic bids to the upcoming NAIA National Tournament.
