The No. 22 St. Thomas volleyball team defeated the No. 11 St. Ben’s Blazers in three straight sets on senior night Wednesday winning 3-0 at Schoenecker Arena.
Along with a victory, the Tommies (26-4 overall, 1-0 MIAC) clinched a regular season MIAC title over the second place Blazers (21-3 overall, 7-3 MIAC).
“I’m just proud of our girls, because they’ve been working so hard all year,” coach Thanh Pham said. “What I loved looking at when I was coaching was that they never doubted themselves, they trusted their process and they went after it. For me, that’s so gratifying.”
The Tommies dominated the first set, winning 25-21. Pham called it a “gritty” win as the Blazers kept the Tommies on their toes every single play.
The Blazers found momentum in the second set, but a late surge of energy saw the Tommies come out on top 26-24.
“We had really solid passing, which is key for the hitters,” Libero Ellie Meyer said. “They were a really good opponent, but we played entirely as a group, and I think that’s one of the big reasons why we won.”
The Tommie seniors showed “strength and leadership” on the court, according to Pham.
The Tommies and the Blazers battled back-and-forth in the third set. The rally between the two teams ended in the Tommies favor, 32-30; a score that sealed the win and a regular season MIAC title for the Tommies.
“In one respect, it’s such a huge honor because we compete in such a tough league. There are five teams with twenty plus wins, and to be at the top of that league is really impressive,” Pham said. “They just took it to them, and I was just really proud of everyone’s efforts – from the benches to our coaches, it was a complete team win.”
The Tommies head to No.12 Augsburg (22-4 overall, 7-2 MIAC) Saturday to face off against the Auggies in the final regular season game of the year.
With a regular season MIAC title, the Tommies earned a first round bye in the MIAC playoffs. St. Thomas will host a TBD opponent on Thursday Nov. 7 at 7 p.m.
Jacob Schneider can be reached at schn6923@stthomas.edu.