The Emory volleyball team will have the opportunity to defend its title after registering two wins on the first day of action at the University Athletic Association Championships.  The No. 1-ranked Eagles opened with a 3-0 (25-11, 25-10, 25-20) quarterfinal-round win over Brandeis before clawing its way to a 3-2 (21-25, 28-26, 25-22, 17-25, 15-10) verdict over Washington University in the semifinals.  Emory now stands 28-2 on the season.  Serving as the host for the Championships is the University of Chicago. 

Though it was outhit (.239 vs. .189) and out blocked (15-4), Emory found a way to top WU in a high-energy battle.  Sophomore Tara Martin led all players with a career-high 25 kills, the high-water mark by an Eagle this season, while ending the contest with a solid hitting effort of .400 (25-5—40).  Martin logged four successful swings in the deciding set including the match winner. Senior Morgan McKnight also came through with a career performance, totaling 19 terminations while adding five digs.  Her showing against the Bears represented her 11^th straight and 21^st match of the campaign with double-figure kills. Junior Leah Saunders rounded out the double-figure attackers with 13 kills.  Senior Elyse Thompson paced Emory with 16 digs, helping Emory to a 65-54 edge in that category, and chipped in three service aces, giving her eight on the day and upping her career total to 160, good for 13^th place on the program's all-time chart. Freshman setter Cassie Srb dished out a season-best 62 assists, tying the school's sixth-highest individual match total. 

With the score deadlocked at 8-8 in the final set, the Eagles went on a 4-0 spurt with McKnight, Saunders, Martin and junior Finn Wilkins all coming through with successful attack tries.  After the teams traded points, Thompson's final ace put Emory one point from clinching.  The Bears accounted for the next point, but Martin's ensuing kill sealed the outcome.

Emory put itself in the semifinals after putting on a dominating offensive display that saw it hit .394 (37-9—71), the team's third-highest mark of the campaign. McKnight led all players with 10 kills, hitting .588 (10-0—17) in the process, while Martin chipped in nine successful swings while turning in an attack percentage of .353 (9-3—17).  Junior Maggie Rimmel was the most efficient hitter for the Eagles, turning in a percentage of .636 after pounding out eight kills with just one miscue in 17 attempts. Rimmel also came through with a team-high three (1-2) total blocks. Saunders and Thompson helped the Eagles record 15 service aces, the squad's second-highest total of the season, with each totaling five.

Emory will meet No. 2-ranked Chicago (26-2) for the crown on Saturday starting at 2:00 pm (EST).  The winner earns the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament with pairings and sites to be announced on Monday, Nov. 11. Chicago bested Emory, 3-1, earlier this season (Oct. 20) at the UAA Round Robin III.