Concordia in rematch for volleyball repeat

Concordia (St. Paul) has a chance to win its second consecutive NCAA Division II national women's volleyball championship tonight, in its home gym, against Cal State San Bernardino -- of all teams.

Cal State San Bernardino is the last team to defeat the Golden Bears. That was Aug. 28, in Concordia's first match of the season.

Since then, the Golden Bears have reeled off a school record 36 consecutive wins, including their four-set triumph over Grand Valley State in Friday night's semifinals at Concordia's Ganglehoff Center.

Grand Valley State (33-4) had won 30 of its previous 31 matches.

"I'm just really proud of our girls," said Concordia coach Brady Starkey. "I think Grand Valley, pound for pound, is probably a little more athletic than we are. I'm just proud of the way our girls stepped it up. It was a fun match to be a part of."

Concordia senior setter Maggie McNamara, who has swept national player of the year honors, paced the Golden Bears with 53 assists. Meanwhile, wielding a powerful right hand, freshman outside hitter Ellie Duffy led them with 16 kills.

Playing before an announced crowd of 1,157, Concordia wasn't flawless.

Leading two sets to one, Concordia found itself tied 18-18 in the fourth set -- knowing the match still could go either way -- before Grand Valley made four consecutive errors.

Moments later, with the Concordia students bouncing on their feet, and chanting "Ohhhhhhh ... " in anticipation, sophomore middle hitter Emily Palkert put away match point with a block at the net.

Last year, the Golden Bears were in Topeka, Kan., when they defeated Western Washington for their first national title. This is different.

"It's electric in there," Starkey said of the partisan crowd. "For me, this was much more emotional because of how much this means to our students, our fan base, parents, family, and our administration that works so unbelievably hard for this."

In the earlier semifinal, Cal State San Bernardino defeated Truman State 25-23, 25-18, 25-23. The top two seeds in the tournament will meet tonight for the championship.

When they met Aug. 28 in San Bernardino's home tournament, the Coyotes swept the Golden Bears in three sets.