OSHKOSH, Wisc. – What a way to finish the 2023 season taking #20 University of La Verne down to five sets in the NCAA Division III National Tournament Second Round coming up short of the upset, 15-25, 25-23, 25-14, 23-25, 11-15. It was only the third five-set match of the year for La Verne as they fought off a tough Tiger team in set five. ETBU finishes the season at 26-4 producing the second most wins in program history and tying the farthest any team has advanced in the NCAA Tournament.
Both teams hit only .158 in the match as set three was the best for ETBU hitting 54.2 percent with 14 kills and on error on 24 attempts. ETBU finished with 12 blocks, 53 kills, and 100 digs.
Three players earned double-doubles in
Graycee Mosley,
Avery Reid and
Sydney Temple. Mosley led the team with 21 kills and 22 digs while Reid posted 17 kills and 10 digs. Temple finished with 13 digs and 19 assists.
Lexi Moody also had 19 assists and
Lillie Hill finished with 30 digs.
Anita Hancock collected eight blocks, too.
ULV opened set one with a 12-0 lead and never looked back. A Hancock kill put ETBU within nine, 14-5, and then a ULV error gave the Tigers their eighth point, 15-8. ETBU made a three-point run towards the end of the set to pull within eight, 23-15, with a block by Perry and a kill from Mosley but ULV went on to win, 25-15.
It was a hard-fought set two that ETBU pulled out to tie the match at one, 25-23. ULV went up early by four, 7-3, and had a three-point lead, 11-8, before ETBU made a run. The Tigers responded on a 3-0 run to tie the set at 11 with a kill from Mosley, block by Hancock, and a ULV error. ULV responded on a run and went up by five, 20-15, and then added another kill to push the lead to five, again, 21-16. A ULV error, Temple kill, and Spicer block put ETBU within two, 21-19, but ULV scored the next two points to move up by four, 23-19. Looking to put ETBU away, the Tigers fought back with six straight points for the set win, 25-23. Mosley and Perry both had two kills in the run with a Spicer service ace.
ETBU ran away with the set three win to go up two sets to one, 25-14. They took a 5-1 lead with four different kills by Reid, Spicer, Perry, and Mosley. A Mosley kill made it 9-3 and then a Reid kill made it 14-6. A ULV coach sanction made it a 10-point lead, 20-10, and then a block by Hancock and a ULV error kept the lead at 10, 23-13. Spicer's kill made it 24-14 and then a ULV error ended set three, 25-14.
Set four mirrored set two as it went back and forth between both teams. ETBU took an early two-point lead, 6-4, on a Mosley kill and an ULV error put the Tigers up, 8-5. ULV came back to tie it at eight but two kills by Reid and a ULV service error gave ETBU a three-point lead, again, 11-8. ULV responded with six straight points for a 14-11 lead. ETBU came within one, 15-14, on a ULV error and then tied it at 17 on a Mosley kill. Down 20-18, ETBU scored three straight points to make it 21-20 on two kills from Reid. Reid then tied the set at 22 on a kill but ULV scored the next two points on a kill and an ETBU attack error. Temple pulled ETBU within one, 24-23, on a kill but a block by ULV ended the set, 25-23, tying the match at two each.
Taking a two-point lead in set five, 2-0, on a Reid kill and a ULV error, ETBU improved their lead to two, 5-3, on a Hancock block. Perry then made it 6-4 on a kill but ULV scored the next four points for an 8-6 lead. ULV would go up, 11-8, but ETBU fought back to tie the set at 11 on two ULV errors and a Hancock block. ULV, though, would score the final four points with a kill, two blocks, and an ETBU attack error to take the match, 15-11.
ETBU finishes with 26 wins in the second round of the NCAA Tournament for only the third time in program history. They lose just Hill who is the only senior on the team. ETBU broke the single season record for consecutive wins, recorded the second most wins in program history, and won the their fourth ASC Tournament Championship.
