SIOUX CITY, Ia. – Fresno Pacific (37-0) held off a last chance surge from No. 4 Concordia (30-8) in a five set thriller to advance to the national title match. The Sunbirds will defend their back-to-back titles at 8 p.m. CST for their third consecutive title.
After the Sunbirds took the first two sets 25-18, 25-23, the Eagles came back to tie the match taking the next two sets 25-20, 25-22, but the Sunbirds hit an impressive .412 hitting percentage to take the final set 15-11.
The five-setter was the fifth of the season for the Sunbirds.
Fresno Pacific's hitters had their best showing in the tournament, with four players finishing with double-figure kills. Keke Wang pounded down 16 kills, followed by
Martina Gregusova with 15.
Lisa Shilling provided the Sunbirds with her first double-figure kill performance of the national championship with 11 and
Lauren Albertson recorded 10 kills. Teaming together to direct the hitters were Erika Adachi and
Emily Carroll, handing out 32 and 23 assists, respectively.
Mariah Mandelbaum held a strong defense with 26 digs.
The Sunbirds will finish their season at 8 p.m. CST in the NAIA Volleyball National Championship, presented by Siouxland Sports Medicine Foundation in the Tyson Events Center/Gateway Arena.