NCAA D-III Volleyball Championship Website
The Emory University volleyball team will be looking to defend its title when it ventures to Cedar Rapids, Iowa to compete in this weekend's (Nov. 21-23) NCAA Division III Championship. The No. 1-ranked Eagles, 32-2 on the year, will square off against Clarkson University (28-5) of the Liberty League in quarterfinal-round action on Thursday starting at 12:30 p.m. (CST). Emory enters the Championship as the No. 1 seed in the eight-team field while the Golden Knights are the eight seed.
Emory punched its ticket to Cedar Rapids after hosting and winning the Atlanta Regional, sweeping Colorado College in the finals. Clarkson battled its way into the quarterfinals after serving as the host and capturing the Potsdam Regional, topping Ithaca in a five sets in the championship match.
This year's Championships will be played at the U.S. Cellular Center.
Thursday, Nov. 21 (times CST)
12:30 pm – Emory vs. Clarkson
3:00 pm – Carthage vs. Bowdoin
5:30 pm – Johns Hopkins vs. Saint Benedict
8:00 pm – Calvin vs. Trinity (TX)
Friday, Nov. 22
5:00 pm – Emory/Clarkson winner vs. Carthage/Bowdoin winner
7:30 pm – Johns Hopkins/Saint Benedict winner vs. Calvin/Trinity winner
Saturday, Nov. 23
7:00 pm – National Championship Match
EMORY VOLLEYBALL NOTES
** This year's appearance in the NCAA Tournament is the Emory volleyball program's 24th consecutive and 25th overall appearance in the postseason. Entering the quarterfinals, the Eagles have an all-time mark of 54-23 in the NCAA Tourney.
** Head Coach Jenny McDowell, now in her 24th season directing fortunes of the program, has a school and career won-lost mark of 777-168. Her record in the NCAA Tournament is 54-22. McDowell has directed the program to 24 straight NCAA Tourney bids. In addition, she has made six trips to the national semifinals and has the 2008 and 2018 national championships to her credit. McDowell has guided the program to 30 or more wins in 13 straight years.
** McDowell was named the U.S. Marine Corps/AVCA Division III National Coach of the Year earlier this week. It is the second time in her career that she has earned the award (2008). In addition, she was named the South Region Coach of the Year for the eighth time.
** At last weekend's NCAA Atlanta Regional, the Eagles opened with a sweep of Notre Dame of Maryland University before posting a 3-1 triumph over No. 20 Transylvania in the semifinals. In the title match, Emory bettered No. 8 Colorado College, 3-0. Senior outside hitter Morgan McKnight was named the Regional's Most Outstanding Player after leading all players with an average of 5.0 kills over 10 sets, hitting .414 in the process (50-9—99). Joining McKnight on the all-tourney team were junior Leah Saunders and freshman setter Cassie Srb.
** Emory earned an automatic bid to the NCAA D-III Tournament after repeating as the University Athletic Association champion. The Eagles swept Brandeis in its first match before rallying for 3-2 decisions against Washington University and No. 2 and host Chicago, respectively. In the championship match against the Maroons of UC, Emory trailed, 2-1, in the match and 24-22 (with Chicago serving) in the fourth set. However, the Eagles fought off elimination, prevailing 15-10 in the deciding game.
** Emory enters this weekend with wins in its last 13 and in 26 of the last 27 matches. During its 13-match win streak, the Eagles have swept six foes, topped three foes in four sets and have four five-set victories.
** The Eagles have played and won all five of their five-set decisions this year:
Sept. 7 vs. Berry
Oct. 27 vs. Susquehanna
Nov. 2 vs. Wittenberg
Nov. 8 vs. Washington University
Nov. 9 vs. Chicago
** Emory starts play this weekend with a team attack percentage of .247, good for the No. 1 spot among UAA teams and 13th in the D-III ranks. In addition, the Eagles are limiting the opposition to just a .141 hitting percentage
** The Eagles have outhit 29 opponents this year. Twelve of Emory's opponents have hit less than .100, with three of those foes finishing with negative percentages.
** Emory has recorded double figures in service aces in three matches, including season-high of 16 vs. New York University (Oct. 6) at the UAA Round Robin II, a match that saw senior Elyse Thompson dial up seven aces, the high-water mark by an Emory player this season.
** Emory ranks second in the UAA and 15th among all D-III programs in kills per set (13.63 kps). The Eagles have finished with 60 or more terminations in six matches and have a season-high of 70 against Washington University in the semifinals of the UAA Championships.
** Junior Leah Saunders (1st Team All-American) has earned a bevy of awards this season. Named the UAA's Most Valuable Player of the Year for the second straight campaign (the first Emory player in program history to earn that distinction), she is second on the club and third in the UAA with an average of 3.18 kills over 119 sets of action. Saunders is second on the squad with 20 contests with double-digit terminations and has either led or shared for team honors in that category on 13 occasions. She has chalked up three matches of 20 or more kills including a pair of career-high tying 21 successful attack attempts against Johnson and Wales (Aug. 30) and Washington University (Oct. 6). A four-time UAA Player of the Week, her versatility ahas allowed her to post 16 outings of double-figure digs and 13 double-doubles (kills/digs). In addition, she has doled out 43 service aces, second on the team. Leah also stands 16th in the conference in digs average (2.50 dps) with 16 matches of 10 or more to her credit. She has produced a team-high 13 double-doubles (kills/digs), most recently a 14-kills, 12-digs performance against Transylvania (Nov. 16). In the win over Colorado College last Sunday, she became the 20th player in school history to reach the 1,000-kills plateau.
** Senior outside hitter Morgan McKnight landed both AVCA Second Team All-America and First Team All-UAA acclaim, and checks into the Championship with a team-high 25 matches (15 straight) of double-figure kills to her credit including a career-high 21 against Transylvania in the semifinals of the Atlanta Regional. She sits atop the UAA chart with an average of 3.36 kills over 118 sets of action while her hitting percentage of .268 ranks 11th. A three-time UAA Player of the Week this season (5x in her career), she has paced or shared for the team lead in kills on 13 occasions. Earlier this season, she became the 19th player in program annals to reach the 1,000-career kills plateau and her current total of 1,211 stands 13th on the program's all-time list. In her last six matches, she is hitting .330 (99-25—224).
** Sophomore Tara Martin (2nd Team All-American) is a key weapon in the Eagles' offensive arsenal, with her team-leading hitting mark of .299 (363-103—869) good for ninth place on the league ladder. The owner of 17 contests with 10 or more kills, her per-set average of 3.17 slots her fourth among UAA leaders. Martin has led or shared for team honors in successful attack attempts in nine contests and has hit .300 or higher on 17 occasions. Chosen to the All-UAA First Team, her 25 terminations against Washington University in the semifinals of the UAA Championships represented a career high as well as the high-water mark by an Emory player during the season. A two-time UAA Player of the Week, Martin was named the MVP of the Emory National Invitational (Nov. 1-2) after pounding out 42 kills over 12 sets, including 17 in a 3-2 win vs. Wittenberg, and hitting 409 (42-6—88).
** Senior libero Elyse Thompson (HM All-American) has spearheaded a strong Emory defense, pacing the team while standing fourth in the UAA with a 4.50 digs-per-set average. Chosen to the All-UAA Second Team for the second straight campaign, she has totaled 26 contests of double-figure digs including 11 with 20 or more. She has a season-high of 28 digs in a 3-1 victory vs. Birmingham Southern (Oct. 10) and finished with 27 against Chicago in the semis of the UAA Championships. She ranks as the program's all-time leader with 1,825 digs and is No. 2 in digs average (4.44 dps). She has given the offense a boost with her serving ability resulting in a team-leading 59 aces, good for 19th place on the school's season ladder. She has compiled 17 matches with two or more aces.
** Freshman setter Cassie Srb (HM All-American) stepped into the starting role at setter and is the lone Eagle to have played in all 122 sets this season. She is dishing out an average of 10.97 assists per set, good for second in the UAA, sixth in D-III and 10th on the Eagles' all-time seasonal ladder. Named to the All-UAA First Team, Srb was voted as both the UAA and the AVCA South Region Rookie of the Year.
Srb has chalked up seven matches of 50 or more assists, most recently at the Atlanta Regional when she finished with 53 against Transylvania, and claims a season-high of 62 vs. Washington University (Nov. 8). Srb already holds down the No. 11 position on Emory's all-time ladder with 1,338 assists. She earned a spot on the NCAA Atlanta Regional All-Tournament Team.
** Junior middle Finn Wilkins has given the Eagles a formidable presence at the net and leads the team with an average of 0.78 blocks per set, placing 10th among UAA players. She has turned in eight matches with three or more total blocks including a career-high 10 (3-7), the highest total by an Eagle this season, vs. Carnegie Mellon (Sept. 22). She is coming off a productive Atlanta Regional where she averaged 2.30 kills while hitting .425 (23-6—40). She tied her season high with eight kills, hitting .462 in the process, against Colorado College in the Regional final.
** Junior middle Maggie Rimmel an Honorable Mention All-UAA choice, is averaging 0.69 blocks per set, slotting her 15th in the UAA. Rimmel has tallied 11 contests with three or more blocks including a season high of six (0-6) vs. Transylvania last Saturday. Rimmel ranks 15th in the UAA in hitting percentage (.246) and has registered four outings with double-figure kills including a career-best 14 vs. NYU (Oct. 6). At last week's Atlanta Regional, she saw action in all of the team's 10 sets and averaged 2.40 kills, hitting .326 (24-8—49), and 0.90 blocks per game.
The following are series records with Emory and the NCAA Championships field
Clarkson – 3-0 (last met in semifinals of 2016 NCAA Brockport Regional, 3-1 Emory win)
Carthage – 0-2 (last meeting in 2010, Carthage 3-0 win)
Bowdoin – 2-0 (last meeting 2017, Emory wins, 3-0)
Johns Hopkins – 8-0 (last meeting 2017, Emory wins 3-1)
Saint Benedict – 2-1 (St. Benedict won last meeting in 2016, 3-2 at Emory)
Calvin – 2-4 (defeated Calvin, 3-0 in 2018 national championship game)
Trinity – 14-10 (Emory won last meeting in 2014)
EAGLES RACKING UP THE HONORS -- The following is a list of various honors that Emory players have received this season
AVCA D-III National Coach of the Year
Jenny McDowell
AVCA All-Americans
Leah Saunders – 1st Team
Morgan McKnight – 2nd Team
Tara Martin – 2nd Team
Elyse Thompson – HM
Cassie Srb – HM
AVCA All-South Region
Leah Saunders, Player of the Year
Morgan McKnight
Tara Martin
Elyse Thompson
Cassie Srb, Rookie of the Year
All-University Athletic Association
Leah Saunders – 1st Team, Most Valuable Player
Tara Martin - 1st Team
Morgan McKnight – 1st Team
Cassie Srb – 1st Team, Rookie of the Year
Elyse Thompson – 2nd Team
Maggie Rimmel – Honorable Mention
Emory Classic All-Tournament Team (Aug. 30-31)
Leah Saunders - MVP
Morgan McKnight
Elyse Thompson
East-To-West Battle All-Tournament Team (Sept. 13-14)
Leah Saunders
Emory Invitational All-Tournament Team (Oct. 25-27)
Leah Saunders – MVP
Tara Martin
Morgan McKnight
Elyse Thompson
Emory National Invitational All-Tournament Team (Nov. 1-2)
Tara Martin – MVP
Leah Saunders
NCAA Atlanta Regional All-Tournament Team
Morgan McKnight, Most Outstanding Player
Cassie Srb
Leah Saunders
UAA Player of the Week
Leah Saunders (Co-Hitter) – Sept. 3
Tara Martin (Co-Hitter) – Sept. 9
Leah Saunders (Hitter) – Oct. 7
Leah Saunders (Hitter) – Oct. 14
Elyse Thompson (Defense) – Oct. 14
Morgan McKnight (Hitter) – Oct. 21
Leah Saunders (Hitter) – Oct. 28
Tara Martin (Hitter) – Nov. 4
Morgan McKnight (Hitter) – Nov. 11
Elyse Thompson (Defense) – Nov. 11
Morgan McKnight (Hitter) – Nov. 18
Cassie Srb (Setter) – Nov. 18