Juniata’s Season Ends Against #2 Hope at NCAA Regionals

Dan Sherman

Asst. SID

Juniata

814-641-3513

Springfield, OH., Juniata women's volleyball saw its quest for a third national title come to an end. The Eagles took the first two sets in their match against the second ranked team in the nation, but could not put them away, falling to Hope in the second round of the NCAA Division III Regionals at Wittenberg University on Friday. Juniata was considered the underdog, facing a tough Hope team that entered the match with a record of 27-1.

Mar-Jana Phillips (Carson, CA/Rolling Hills Prep) led the team on offense with 17 kills and a .387 hitting percentage. Amelia Kepler (Kane, PA / Kane Area) had 13 kills, while reigning AVCA Player of the Week Nakita Gearhart (Waynesboro, PA / Greencastle-Antrim) added 8. Kelly Reynolds (Upper Saint Clair, PA/Upper Saint Clair) totaled 44 assists.

Defensively, Brittani Young (Columbia, PA / Hempfield Area) led the team in digs tallying 22, with Bryce Arnold (Shippensburg, PA / Shippensburg Area HS) adding 14 of her own. Freshman Lydia Meuller (Carlisle, PA / Carlisle) chipped in 11 digs. Reynolds contributed seven digs. Mueller led the team with her three service aces.

The Eagles took an early 7-2 advantage and did not trail afterwards in the first set. Hope cut into the lead late, tying the game at 17, before Juniata went ahead by two. The Flying Dutch continued to chip away, but Juniata took the set 25-21.

Set two was another close one. The Eagles were two points away from taking the set when Hope pulled away by one, setting themselves up to tie the match. Juniata answered with two of their own, before The Flying Dutch tied it up again. The Eagles would tack on two more points to take the set and a 2-0 lead in the match.

Unfortunately, the Eagles were unable to finish Hope in the third set. Hope went on a seven-point run to take a 9-3 lead and never looked back. Trailing 24-17, the Eagles stayed alive with three straight points, but would eventually lose the set 20-25. The Flying Dutch dominated in the fourth frame, taking an early 9-2 lead. Hope would steal the set and the momentum from Juniata. Hope played like the second best team in the country downing the Blue and Gold 25-14. The team continued its comeback with a strong fifth, pulling ahead 11-3. Juniata cut the lead to four, but could not muster enough of a comeback themselves as Hope took the set and the match.

Head coach Heather Pavlik, along with Phillips and Young spoke to the media after the match. Pavlik said that today's contest was a good example of how Juniata has played all season stating that, "there's been times when we've been really good and times when we really struggled and we saw a bit of both of that in that match." She would add, "Things really started to shift in the second game. They really started to settle down more than anything else and we were not winning the pass/serve game like we were in the first set."

When asked about what this experience against a top opponent taught the team Phillips replied, "We've got to come out harder. We know what to expect now and we're going to take it to them [in 2015]." Playing in her final game, Young was asked about her thoughts on the future of the program, declaring, "I'm really excited to see what they do in the future. The Juniata legacy is always going to be strong and live on. We're always going to be here. We've just got to come out harder, want it a little more, and do everything just a little better." She finished by stating, "I have so much faith in Juniata. I'm so proud of what we did and how the season ended. We went down swinging."

Though the season ended earlier than expected for Juniata, the Eagles can still smile about another successful year under coach Pavlik. The Blue and Gold continued their dominance in the Landmark, winning the conference for the eighth straight time. The team loses Kepler, the Landmark Player of the Year, Young, the conference Specialist of the Year, and fellow senior Christine Sumner (Dublin, OH, Bishop Watterson), but is encouraged by the progression of sophomores Reynolds, Phillips and Gearhart, as well as the play of freshman Megan Moroney (Mentor, OH / Mentor) and Meuller. Moroney was recently named the Landmark Conference Rookie of the Year. The Eagles will once again be a competitive team in the 2015 season and will look to bring another Landmark and NCAA championship to Huntingdon next year.