BOX SCORE
COLUMBIA, Mo. --- Biola rallied from a one-game deficit and then again from an eight-point hole in game four, defeating National American University 27-30, 30-24, 30-22, 30-27 on Friday night at the Southwell Complex, earning a spot in the semifinals at the NAIA National Championships.
The Eagles improve to 32-7 on the season with the win and are 4-0 in the tournament so far. The Mavericks, who were the fifth seed in the tournament, wrap up their season with a 28-11 record.
Biola posted a very balanced attack with five players recording double-digit kills. Junior Kristen Peterson led the Eagles with 13 kills, hitting .400 for the match and adding three kills. Junior outside hitters Meghan Warkentin and Maggie McGill added 12 kills each while Kelsey Mitchell and Jessica Buffum contributing 11 a piece.
Biola got off to a slow start in a close, back-and-forth first game. The Mavericks led through the majority of the game and took control late in the game with a three-point run to go up 21-17 en route to the victory.
In game two, the Eagles scored the first three points, but NAU rattled of a 6-1 run to regain the lead early. The teams exchanged points until Biola broke a 20-20 tie with a three-point run, then closed out the game with a 7-1 run to even up the match. The game was so tight that both teams recorded 19 kills and four errors in 49 total attempts. However, the difference came via the serve as Biola had two aces and no errors while the Mavericks had three errors and failed to record an ace.
Biola broke open a close third game with a 7-0 run to take a commanding 14-7 lead midway through the game. The Eagles would lead by as many as nine points before settling for the 30-22 win.
It looked as though the Mavericks would force a fifth game as they jumped out to a 15-10 lead. The Eagles temporarily tied the score at 15-15 only to see NAU use an 8-2 run to take a commanding 23-17 lead. However, instead of giving up and playing for a fifth game, Biola broke out the defense and put together an amazing 10-1 run to take a 27-24 lead. The Eagles traded points down the stretch and won the match on a monster kill by McGill.
Overall, the Biola back row shined as sophomore libero Katie Stevens recorded a season-high 32 kills while senior defensive specialist Dani Aigaki added 17.
Biola now advances to the national semifinal match to face a familiar foe in Fresno Pacific University. The top-ranked Sun Birds easily defeated the University of Texas-Brownsville in three games in the second quarterfinal. The Eagles have been the only team to defeat FPU this season, winning in five games at Biola on October 31.
The semifinal match begins at 9:30 a.m. (CT) with the second semifinal slated for 12:30 p.m. (CT). The Championship match is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. (CT). The games are being broadcast through the NAIA's website on a pay-per-view basis. Live stats are available through Biola's website by clicking here.
