Washington University Rolls Into NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regional Championship Match With 3-0 Win Over Mount St. Joseph

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - The defending national champion Washington University Bears rolled despite a game effort by the Mount St. Joseph Lions, moving into the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regional championship match with a 3-0 victory.

The win was the 10th in a row for Washington University, the tournament champion of the University Athletic Association. The Bears improved to 32-6 on the season and moved into the regional championship match at 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 15, in Wittenberg's Pam Evans Smith Arena. On the other side, Mount St. Joseph ended its season with a record of 29-11 after winning the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference regular season and tournament titles before disposing of Washington & Lee in the first round of the national tournament.

Washington University needed extra time to win the first set, 27-25, before taking control midway the next two sets to pull away for wins of 25-20 and 25-22. A diverse offensive attack that piled up a .294 hitting percentage was the key, sparked by the steady play of setter Audra Janak, who finished with 32 assists, 12 digs and three blocks.

She distributed the ball to five different players who finished with at least 10 attack attempts, including Erin Albers, who pounded 14 kills on 19 swings to finish with a .632 attack percentage. Just as efficient was the play of Erin Kasson, who finished with seven kills on 10 swings for a .600 attack percentage. She also added five blocks, spearheading a defense that was led in digs by Laura Brazeal with 19.

Mount St. Joseph was paced offensively by setter Katie Playko with 36 assists and Jamie Grauvogel with 14 kills. Defensively, Grauvogel and Jamie Cooper led a balanced effort with 10 digs apiece.