SIOUX CITY, Iowa – The No. 5-ranked Corban University Women's Volleyball team gave the two-time defending national champions in No. 8-ranked and No. 4-seeded Indiana Wesleyan University everything they could handle in a five-set marathon, yet the Warriors saw their 2025 campaign come to an end in a back-and-forth affair that saw the Wildcats advance to the national semifinals for a third-consecutive season. Despite the five-set loss via 25-13, 21-25, 25-22, 22-25, and 15-10 final scores, the Navy and Gold have now appeared in two-straight national quarterfinal matches and three in the last four seasons, with this year's final team result tying for the third best finish in Corban women's volleyball program history.
"Finishing in the final eight of a very competitive national championship field is something this team should be incredibly proud of," began Warriors' head coach Kim McLain when asked to discuss her program's final result of 2025. "Their fight and grit were on full display, and the continued to battle all the way to the very end. I am so proud of how they rose to every challenge and stayed united through it all. It's an honor to coach such high character women who consistently give everything they have. They are truly a blessing to coach, both on and off the court. We will deeply miss our seniors and the leadership they brought to this program. What a special journey this group has shared together as teammates for life."
The Warriors' 2025 season comes to a close at 27-6 overall with nearly of their total wins coming against nationally ranked opponents (13) due to the incredible depth of the Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC). Even in today's result against the two-time national champion Wildcats (31-4), the Navy and Gold went blow for blow in every statistical category, either tying or slightly trailing Indiana Wesleyan in each major statistic.
The opening set was all Wildcats in a throwaway period for the Warriors, as they dropped a 25-13 score with numerous attacking errors and a non-existent defensive presence. Even despite their lopsided score, Corban still went shot for shot with IWU over the final four sets, eventually forcing a fifth winner-take-all set by taking both the second and fourth sets.
After rallying to force the fifth set in front of a large contingency of Wildcat supporters who made the journey from Marion, Indiana, the Warriors' offense stalled at an inopportune time for their championship anticipations, as they managed just two kills in the final period while 11 of the 15 points Indiana Wesleyan would go on to score would come via kills.
The careers of setter Abby Guindy, opposite hitter Makayla Roginski, and middle blocker Gracie Boeder all come to a close with yet another national bracket play appearance, with the three Warrior standouts all rising to the occasion today at the Tyson Events Center in numerous ways. Guindy clinched a near double-double with a team-best 29 assists while adding nine digs in the backcourt, Roginski tallied 15 kills with just two errors for a .371 kill percentage, while Boeder led all Warriors in blocking with five block assists and added a pair of kills.
Junior outside hitter Emma Bischoff completed an outstanding end to her third year as a collegiate women's volleyball student-athlete with the Warriors with a career-high 22 kills and 11 digs for a 13th double-double effort of the season. Both junior outside hitter Kendra Bittle and redshirt sophomore opposite hitter Taylor Kieser tallied ten kills apiece, with Kieser's kill count also representing a career best.
A 22-dig performance from junior libero Kaile'a Ontai provided the Navy and Gold with plenty of backcourt support, adding an ace and five assists in support of the setters. Finally, junior setter Nadeiah Howard provided 19 assists and 11 digs for her own double-double, the sixth of her completed season from the secondary rotation.
Wildcats' NAIA Player of the Year and outside hitter Eva Joldersma did what she does best today to clinch a national semifinal appearance for IWU, as she dropped a 24-kill and 10-dig double-double to keep Corban at bay. Outside hitter Shae Williams added 16 kills for Indiana Wesleyan, while libero Cadee Notter led all players with 23 digs.
McLain and the Warriors will next prepare for their spring training/competitive scrimmage season in 2026, with three senior student-athletes graduating in the upcoming Corban commencement next May. They'll return four starters and their entire secondary rotation in the fall of 2026, ready to make yet another push for both CCC and NAIA championship titles.