Historic Season Concludes With National Championship Title For First Time In Program History
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Scottsdale Community College (26-2) | 24 | 23 | 25 | 25 | 14 | 2 |
|
Richard Bland College (34-3) | 26 | 25 | 22 | 19 | 16 | 3 |
SOUTH PRINCE GEORGE, VA - The Richard Bland women's volleyball team closes the season 34-3 after taking down #6 Scottsdale Community College in the NJCAA Division II National Championship title match this evening. The Richard Bland women's volleyball team has concluded a historic season led by first year head coaches Stephanie and Shaun Dryden. For the first time in program history, women's volleyball has won not only one, but four matches in the NJCAA National Tournament, including the National Championship title!
How it happened:
- Thursday, November 17th - #5 Richard Bland defeated #12 McHenry County College, 3-1 in the first round to advance to the quarterfinals. (25-20, 25-15, 27-29, and 25-18)
- Thursday, November 17th - #5 Richard Bland defeated #4 Iowa Central Community College, 3-0 in the quarterfinals to advance to the semifinal round. (25-14, 25-15 and 25-18)
- Friday, November 18th - #5 Richard Bland reverse swept top seed #1 Johnson County Community College to advance to the NJCAA National Championship match. (19-25, 21-25, 25-18, 25-20 and 15-11)
- Saturday, November 19th - #5 Richard Bland defeated #6 Scottsdale Community College to be crowned the NJCAA Division II Women's Volleyball National Champions.
Taking an early 2-0 lead, the Statesmen took down the #6 Artichokes with set scores of; 26-24, 25-23, 22-25, 19-25, and 16-14. Sarah Heath, Leilani Goggin and Hailey Hopkins led the attack with 17, 16, and 15 kills. Hopkins and Heath also added five and three block assists in the five set win. Karagyn Durco assisted on 62 occasions and added 17 digs. Silaulauinasimativa Aoelua was credited with 19 digs and four service aces. With multiple tied scores, and back and forth lead changes throughout all five sets, the Statesmen held on for the first ever National Title in RBC Women's Volleyball program history.
Hailey Hopkins and Leilani Goggin were named to All-Tournament Team, while Karagyn Durco was named Tournament Most Valuable Player.
Congratulations to first year head coaches; Stephanie and Shaun Dryden, and the entire RBC women's volleyball team for completion of their historic season and for being named National Champions!