Last weekend, three MCAC volleyball teams finished in the top 10 at the NJCAA DIII Volleyball National Tournament in Cedar Rapids, IA.
Minnesota West Community and Technical College, in their first NJCAA Volleyball National Tournament appearance, advanced to the championship game and finished as the runner-up. The Lady Jays entered the tournament as the #2 seed and soundly defeated #15 seed Bunker Hill Community College 3-0 in the first round. Advancing into the winner's bracket, Minnesota West squared off with #10 Dallas College North Lake and defeated them 3-0 to move on to the semifinals. In the semifinal match, the Lady Jays extended their perfect set record by defeating #11 College of DuPage 3-0, setting up a Region 13 vs. Region 5 championship game for the second straight year. #1 ranked Dallas College Eastfield, the returning national champions, stood across the net from the Lady Jays. When the match ended, Eastfield was crowned the champion again with a 3-0 win over Minnesota West.
Century College put together another great run at the national tournament following their 2023 national runner-up campaign. The Wood Ducks entered the 2024 tournament as the #5 seed, and they took the floor against #12 seed Raritan Valley Community College to open their tournament action. After getting the 3-0 win over RVCC, the Wood Ducks faced #4 seed Sandhills Community College in the winner's bracket round of eight. Picking up the win 3-0 advanced Century into the semifinals where they saw a rematch of last year's championship game against Dallas College Eastfield. Eastfield's defeated Century 3-0, sending the Wood Ducks into the 3rd place game to face #11 seed College of DuPage. After a marathon match, the Wood Ducks fell 2-3 to DuPage and finished in 4th place at the tournament.
Rochester Community and Technical College entered the tournament as the #13 seed and faced #4 seed Sandhills Community College in the opening round. The Yellowjackets put up a good fight but lost 1-3, sending them to the consolation bracket. Rebounding from the initial loss, the Yellowjackets stormed back to capture a 3-0 win over #12 seed Raritan Valley CC and a 3-0 win over #16 seed Harrisburg Area CC to advance to the 9th place match. The Yellowjackets were matched up with #6 seed Butler County CC, and after playing four sets, Rochester lost 1-3 to finish in 10th place.
The following MCAC athletes were named to the 2024 NJCAA DIII Volleyball All-Tournament Team:
Mia McGuire - Rochester Community and Technical College
Alexis Helmin - Century College
Lexi Schreurs - Minnesota West Community and Technical College
Ella Hesse - Minnesota West Community and Technical College
In addition, Brittney McNab, head coach of Minnesota West Community and Technical College, was named the North Plains District A Coach of the Year, and Jen Nerison, head coach for Rochester Community and Technical College, was named the North Plains District B Coach of the Year.
The NJCAA will announce the 2024 DIII Volleyball All-Americans in early December.
About the Minnesota College Athletic Conference
The Minnesota College Athletic Conference is the organizational body for NJCAA-affiliated two-year technical and community college athletic programs in the Minnesota State system, as well as select colleges in North Dakota and Wisconsin. The mission of the Minnesota College Athletic Conference is to advance intercollegiate athletics by providing an engaging and supportive environment for success of our student athletes and competition among member institutions. The MCAC is committed to the guiding principles of encouraging the development and success of student athletes, promoting the integrity, honesty and loyalty to member schools as well as upholding the sustainability of conference athletic programs.