In their first season of postseason eligibility, the Park University Gilbert volleyball team had a mountain to climb to achieve their goal of bringing home the school's first ever conference championship and clinching a spot in the NAIA tournament.
Today, they reached the mountain top and knocked off (RV) Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) in four sets (25-20, 10-25, 25-23, 25-18) to be crowned the Cal Pac's regular season champions. Joyful tears streamed down the Buccaneers' smiling faces as their hard work culminated. The team celebrated the title with hugs, pictures and making TikToks; they donned their championship shirts and beanies and hoisted the conference's most coveted award.
"It's huge. It's just setting the staple for what we want to do from here on," head coach Clay Webb said. "I couldn't be prouder for these girls. They busted their butts the last couple years and this year especially. They worked so hard to get to this point and the smiles and tears in their eyes make it all worthwhile."
Like Jordan in the Finals or Tiger at The Master's, the Buccaneers' most dominant player stepped up on the conference's biggest stage. Behind six digs, two block assists and a career-high 19 kills from 2021 All-Conference First Team member Miranda Bacon, the Buccaneers ended the Eagles streak of four straight championships with the exception of last year which they opted out of due to COVID.
"I think it was the environment, the excitement, getting ready for this," Bacon said about what helped her to her impressive performance. "Everyone's there pumping me up and I have to give it to the whole team."
Clearly feeding off the momentum of their reverse sweep in yesterday's opening round, the Buccaneers got off to a red hot start, but the Eagles kept it tied as late as 18-18. Then, Park ended set one on a 7-1 run thanks to three kills by Bacon and a slew of errors by the Eagles.
Taking the first victory was a good sign for a Buccaneers team that has not lost a match all season after winning the first set. But the Eagles, who are consistently one of the best teams in the nation, would not go down without a fight. They humbled the Buccaneers in set two and held them to a match-low 10 points. But as the Buccaneers have all season, they responded positively when facing adversity. Even through the defeat, they maintained a positive energy- a staple of Webb's coaching style and the team's personality.
Set three was the tightest of the day with the biggest lead being three points and the Buccaneers leading through most of it. Knotted at 23-23, setter Melissa Blockey (16 assists, five digs) set up kills for Megan Hicks and Makenna Busse to finish the set.
Luckily, the Buccaneers are also undefeated this season after leading 2-1. After that, confidence and momentum were clearly on the Bucs' side, as they played their best stretch of the day in the fourth set. The Buccaneers could not help but smile as they closed in on the championship with a 5-1 run coming out of a timeout to finish the match.
One of the big differences in today's match was the Bucs' defensive play at the net. Busse led things with seven block assists as the team totaled 17. They were also efficient in picking up Eagle attacks as four Bucs notched double-digit digs. All-Conference libero Hattie Patton led the team with 13 digs, while Kendra Zuckerman and Annika Wallace had 11 and Amanda Jonovich had 10.
Jonovich was second to Bacon in kills with nine and was just ahead of Zuckerman (7), Kayla Wieserman (6) and Busse (5). Wallace, a freshman, added 30 assists.
In just the program's third year of existence and first season of postseason eligibility, achieving that feat is nothing short of remarkable and rare. The feat becomes much more impressive when you consider the hurdles this team has had to overcome this season and in the Cal Pac Tournament.
The Buccaneers traveled up to Prescott, Ariz. without several key players, including their All-Conference middle blocker Elizbaeth Clemit, outside hitter Lexi Golleher and libero Gabriela Morales due to a slew of ailments that plagued the team in the final games of the season.
In their absence, several players stepped up on the conference's biggest stage- such as Masaya Archbold (OPP), Daniella Miranda-Johnson (S), and Megan Hicks (OH).
Archbold was second on the team with three block assists on a day where their at-net defense made a huge difference. Hicks had four kills, including a key one that brought the first set to set point. Miranda-Johnson appeared in all four sets as a serving weapon.
"It's been a tough season because everyone has had different rolls at different times," Patton said. "It's been hard, but we stuck together and been successful and this has been our goal the entire season. It feels so good to finally accomplish what we've been working for."
The absence of Clemit was easily the biggest hole the Bucs needed filled, but luckily, they had a 2020 All-Conference middle blocker waiting in the midst in Wieserman. A senior amid her final collegiate season and a member of the inaugural Buccaneers team seized the opportunity to achieve a goal she set her eyes on three years ago; she finished with six kills and kept the Buccaneers spirits sky-high with her energy.
"We've definitely gone through a lot of adversity and we're just trying to stay together and that's been our biggest support system for everyone single one of us on the court," Wieserman said. "Girls who have been coming up as freshmen have been doing absolutely amazing and we're just constantly supporting each other."
Having a "next man up" mentality has been nothing new for the Buccaneers this season, who have been dealing with major absences all season. Last season's Setter of the Year was injured in September and made her return in yesterday's game; she forced two service aces.
What's Next
The Buccaneers will have the weekend to celebrate before they turn their attention to the NAIA tournament. On Monday, Nov. 15 at 9 a.m. (Arizona time), the NAIA will stream a selection show on Facebook Live where the Buccaneers' opening round opponent and location will be announced. The NAIA tournament is scheduled to begin on Sat., Nov. 20.
THE SELECTION SHOW CAN BE WATCHED HERE ON MONDAY, NOV. 15 AT 9 AM
Notes:
- The Eagles' defeat was just the fourth time all season they had lost in four or fewer sets. The prior losses were to top-19 ranked opponents.
- The Bucs' win marked just the second time they had beat Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) and the first time they defeated them in fewer than five sets.
