ROME, Georgia - On Thursday, November 16th your Mount St. Joseph University Women's Volleyball team traveled to Berry College to compete in the NCAA DIII Tournament. The Lions entered the tournament a #4 seed taking on the #5 seed Covenant College (Ga.) Scots. The Lions got off to a great start grabbing set one but could not find their rhythm after. Covenant took sets two, three and four to advance in the NCAA DIII Tournament. The Lions battled but ultimately fell short after a historic and incredible 2023 campaign.
In the first set both squads battled for the advantage. Each squad traded points until the Lions exploded on a 11-2 run.
Emma Sicking led the way with 4 kills during the rally including 2 more from
Hannah Graves. The Lions now held a 22-13 advantage but the Scots would answer back. Covenant would grab the next 4 points but kills from
Emily Pfeifer and
McKenzee Wagener would seal set one by a score of 25-17.
In set two the Lions would jump ahead to start. A pair of kills from Graves gave the Lions an early 8-5 lead. But, Covenant would begin to rally back. The Scots took control jumping ahead 12-10 and never looked back. The Scots took set two 25-19 to even the score at 1.
In the third set, the Scots would jump out to an early lead. The Scots never let the lead slip away taking set three 25-17 to grab a 2-1 advantage.
In set four, the Lions were motivated to start strong. Three service aces from
Hannah Graves and a kill from
Emma Sicking gave the Lions a 4-0 lead. But, Covenant would answer tying the game at 6. The Lions wouldn't roll over going on a 6-0 run taking a 14-9 lead. But, Covenant again would answer tying the game at 16. The Lions would then jump out to a 19-17 lead but the Scots would erupt on a 6-0 run. The Lions got 1 point back but couldn't stop Covenant to close out the set. The Scots grabbed the final 2 points to take set four 25-20 and the match 3-1.
Emma Sicking led the way for the Lions grabbing a team-high 15 kills.
Hannah Graves followed tallying 13 kills while hitting .200.
Emily Pfeifer was also effective grabbing 10 kills and 5 blocks.
Grace Young looked solid in the middle with 7 kills and 6 blocks while hitting .429.
McKenzee Wagener also tallied 5 kills along with 2 blocks.
Erin Androne led the defensive effort with 18 digs while also grabbing a service ace.
Jasmine Butler was effective from the Setter position registering 43 assists.
This wraps up a historic and incredible 2023 season. The Lions finish the 2023 campaign with a 24-3 record and a regular season HCAC Championship. The Lions earned four 1st Team All-HCAC Selections including
Grace Young,
Jasmine Butler,
Erin Androne and
McKenzee Wagener along with two major awards. Freshman
Emma Sicking was named the HCAC Newcomer of the year and Head Coach
John Spinney was named HCAC Coach of the Year. The Lions earned a NCAA DIII Tournament berth for the first time since 2010.
Thank you to our Seniors for all their hard work and dedication to the Mount St. Joseph Women's Volleyball program. We also would like to thank all the fans for their support this season! For continued coverage of MSJ Women's Volleyball and all MSJ Athletics be sure to check msjlions.com and follow us on Twitter/X @msj_lions. Congratulations to MSJ Women's Volleyball on an outstanding 2023 season!
