Juniata Sweeps Spartans on Way to Regional Final

HUNTINGDON, PA – The Juniata women's volleyball team defeated Case Western Reserve in style with a 3-0 (25-12, 25-14, 25-17) victory in the NCAA DIII Huntingdon, Pa. Regional Saturday night.

The team was on fire throughout the entire match and played with a calm demeanor that never seemed to faulter. They finished with 46 kills, an overall hitting percentage of .312, 13 service aces, 53 digs and six blocks. 

"This match we came together as a team," Brittanie Tannenbaum (Highlands Ranch, CO / Highlands Ranch) said. "We just relaxed, went out there and played." 

Tannenbaum finished the match with eight kills, a .263 hitting percentage and one solo block. Her play has been strong and consistent throughout the tournament. She hit .600 in Round One. 

Megan Moroney (Mentor, OH / Mentor) came up big in the middle with 12 kills, a solo block and two block assists. Mar-Jana Phillips (Carson, CA / Rolling Hills Preparatory) put up nine kills, followed by Tannenbaum at eight and Nakita Gearhart (Waynesboro, PA / Greencastle-Antrim) at seven. Gearhart finished the match with a .400 hitting percentage and four service aces.

One of the Eagles' focuses in practices has been serving with aggression. 

"We've gotten a lot more confident with our serves," Bryce Arnold (Shippensburg, PA / Shippensburg Area) said. "They've (the coaches) been talking to us a lot about always going after it and it's starting to pay off." 

Arnold aced the Spartans five times throughout the match. 

Fellow senior, Kristin Collins (Freedom, PA / Ambridge) also had a strong performance against CWRU. Collins finished with five kills, a .308 hitting percentage and one block assist. 

"We've really been focused on playing loose and having fun," Moroney said. "The games we just have fun playing volleyball and don't think about it are the games we play our best." 

At the center of the Eagles' offensive effort was setter Kelly Reynolds (Upper Saint Clair, PA / Upper Saint Clair). Reynolds picked up 39 assists in the match, one service ace and one block assist. The Landmark Conference Player of the Year is just five assists away from moving into eighth all-time in career assists by a Juniata athlete. 

The win puts Juniata into the Regional Final for the first time since 2011. They will face Wittenberg University at 3pm Sunday November 15. 

The two teams battled early this season on the Tigers' home court Sept. 5. Juniata was down by two sets when they fought back for a 3-2 victory (20-25, 27-25, 25-22, 25-16, 15-9). 

"That was really early in the season," head coach Heather Pavlik reflected. "Both teams have grown and changed quite a bit, so we have to keep that in perspective. We obviously started pretty slow in that one and we're hoping to have a quicker start this time."

In hopes of aiding to a potentially quick start for the Eagles, Juniata's President Jim Troha has announced that all students will get in free to Sunday's match.