Click the ‘Play Button on the photo above to watch video highlights from the historic win. (Photo Credit: Doug Pfeiler)
SALEM, Ore. – For the first time in program history, the Corban University volleyball team is headed to the NAIA National Championship final site thanks to a come-from-behind four-set victory (22-25, 25-22, 25-10, 27-25) over Mount Vernon Nazarene University in the NAIA Opening Round. For the Warriors, the win builds on the historic year in which they qualified for the national tournament for the first time ever, and now are headed to the final site in the same season.
Click the 'Play Button on the photo above to watch video highlights from the historic win.
"Mount Vernon is a very well-coached and scrappy team," said Corban head coach Kim McLain. "I was proud of our team in how they came together to fight hard for the win."
Mount Vernon (31-6) came out firing, catching Corban off guard while claiming a 25-22 first-set victory.
Waking up in set two, the Warriors bounced back to edge the Cougars by the same three-point score-line, leveling the contest at 1-1. Set three was a dominant performance from Corban, winning by 15 points while hitting at a .364 clip.
In the fourth set, Mount Vernon certainly didn't go down without a fight, staving off numerous match points while forcing the contest to continue. Corban eventually came up with the go-ahead point to take the one-point advantage at 26-25, and then a big block on match point sealed the historic triumph for the Navy and Gold.
Amber Parker came up with a massive performance offensively, hammering ball after ball to lead Corban with 21 kills while also recording 15 digs defensively. Three other Warriors notched double-figure kill numbers, with Adriana Aguayo totaling 13, Alaina Gentili notching 12, and Marandah Boeder registering 11 kills.
Defensively, Haley Wells put together another solid all-around effort, racking up 20 digs in the victory. Madison McLain also played well defensively, registering 13 digs while dishing out 59 assists to keep the offense flowing. In addition, Lauren Condon played one of her best matches of the year, notching 16 digs in the opening round contest.
"It is a great accomplishment to reach our goal to make it to the National Final Site," said McLain. "It is such an honor to be coaching such a great group of girls."
Following the match, Coach McLain and Parker talked about the historic win:
Corban (23-6) takes a break from action during the Thanksgiving week before heading to Sioux City, Iowa for pool play matches at the NAIA Final Site from November 29 - December 3. The poll play schedule will be announced on Sunday afternoon at 3 p.m. PST. NAIA Tournament Info. Live video at nationals here.