By: Evan Harvey
The College of DuPage women's volleyball team ended a strong season with a fourth-place finish at the NJCAA Division III National Championships Nov. 13 to 15 at the Alliant Energy Powerhouse Arena in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
The sixth-seeded Chaparrals started the tournament by defeating 11th-seeded Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute 3-2 (20-25, 25-19, 25-19, 23-25,
15-8). Later that day, COD took on undefeated No. 3 seed Butler County Community College
of Pennsylvania and needed all five sets, and extra points in three of them, to knock
off the previously unbeaten Pioneers 3-2 (25-20, 24-26, 27-25, 22-25, 16-14). After
dropping the fourth set, DuPage found itself in an 8-1 hole in the fifth with championship
aspirations fading. The Chaps responded with a 15-6 run to punch their ticket to the
semifinal.
On Nov. 14, the Chaps faced the Bears of Dallas College Brookhaven in the tournament
semifinal. DuPage battled throughout but ultimately fell 0-3 (20-25, 25-27, 18-25). Claire Rambasek paced the Chaps with 10 kills. Jaime Volz was instrumental in the passing game, recording 14 assists, while Ava Diaz added 11 assists. Defensively, Frankie Brandonisio tallied 14 digs, and Megan Daca registered three block assists.
On Nov. 15, DuPage took on Rochester Community and Technical College in the third-place
game and, while dispaying a dominant effort in the second set, winning 25-12, fell
to the Yellowjackets. Rambasek again led the Chaps in kills with eight. Sami Hornbogen and Daca each added seven kills. Diaz led in assists with 15. Brandonisio paced the
defense with 11 digs, while Rambasek and Diaz each recorded 10 digs. Daca was a steady
presence at the net with eight block assists.
The fourth-place finish capped off a strong season for the Chaps, who ended the year
27-14 and outperformed their No. 6 seed entering the tournament. Head coach Tolis Koskinaris reflected on the team's run in Cedar Rapids.
"We had an amazing opening day playing two difficult matches against two quality opponents. In hindsight, the emotional spend to get through those matches might have been too much to regather and make a run on Friday and Saturday," he said. "In the end, fourth is a great finish for this team and a nice wrap on an incredible season."