THE RUNDOWN
The Lady Patriots' (25-7, 14-2 LSC) historic season came to a close on Thursday night with a loss to Colorado Mesa (22-6, 15-3 RMAC) in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division II South Central Regional. The five-set thriller was the closest DBU has ever come to winning a match in the NCAA Tournament.
 
The first set was as tight as one might expect from the fourth and fifth seeds of a regional. Both teams played tug-of-war for the lead, but neither could pull ahead by more than until the Mavericks extended their 3-point advantage to five, 22-17. With the opener on the line, the Lady Patriots went on a 10-3 run to win the frame. AJ Koele, playing on the right side, slammed five kills in the set's last six points, finishing with nine in the set.
 
Colorado Mesa, feeling as though it gave away the first, came back with a sense of urgency in set two. After losing the first point, the Mavericks did not trail for the remainder of the frame, widening the gap to as many as 10 to even the set count.
 
Like the first, the third set was tightly contested. Neither squad held more than a two-point lead until a CMU attack error put DBU up, 8-11. Immediately followed by a Kenzie McNeill service ace, the Mavericks strung together an impressive 16-point stretch where they won 12 of those points. A stifled Lady Patriots offense (.049 hitting in the set) failed to piece together a comeback and surrendered the set to the CMU.
 
With the threat of elimination looming, DBU controlled the majority of set four. Emily Van Slate erupted for five kills in the frame and all but forced a fifth set with a kill that put the Lady Patriots just one point away from doing so. Down 24-15, the Mavericks claimed 6 straight points, but Van Slate awakened again to seal the set for her team.
 
The Lady Patriots faced an early deficit, trailing 8-3, but answered with a 5-1 sting to bring the margin to a single point. The rest of the match was back-and-forth volleyball. Colorado Mesa matched each threat from its foe and prevented the Lady Patriots from ever doing so much as tie the score in the deciding set, ending DBU's most successful season to date.
 
THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
- With a final overall record of 25-7, Jordan Fish's squad established a program record for overall winning percentage in a season (.781). 
- In the final match of her career, AJ Koele finished the season with 449 kills, the 2nd most DBU Volleyball has ever seen, and a kills per set rate of 4.08, a program record.
- In what was also her curtain call, Lauryn Burt set a career-high in assists with 58, pushing her into 3rd place for the program's most assists dished in a season.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
7 - The Lady Patriots totaled seven blocks on the night, led by Lindsey Otero's five block assists.
10 - Four Lady Patriots recorded 10 more digs (Kenzie McNeill, Leah Palensky, Lexy Pettitte, and Emily Van Slate)
12 - Shaylee Shore tied her career-high for kills (12) in back-to-back matches.

LAURYN BURT REFLECTING ON HER TIME AT DBU
"It was everything that I could have ever wanted it to be. I had several crazy different options, and then I knew right away. I think I was on campus for three hours, and I [thought], "Yep, I'm going here." I had a great experience in my undergrad, but I just knew my fifth year I wanted something different....I can't commend DBU enough. Just their athletic program and the support that we get as athletes, it's just amazing, and I love it. And I've been super fortunate, super blessed that way."

JORDAN FISH'S THOUGHTS ON THE SEASON
"This past season, it was a special season, for sure. We did have a lot of transfers use their fifth year, some with multiple years left, and just a great group returning. I felt like this was the closest team I've ever coached. They were bought in, just, to DBU, and DBU is amazing. We are a Christian school that is really competitive and wants to win championships for Christ. Everyone on the team was all in on that, and that makes it really fun 'cause we're all on the same page. I have a great staff, great leaders on the court. It was really special to me, especially, yes, building a program back up, and so I'm super thankful."

Click here to watch the post game press conference. Read Full Article