THE LEAD
Virginia Wesleyan made the most of its second appearance in an ODAC volleyball championship match as the Marlins won an outstanding battle at the net with Randolph-Macon, 3-1, to hoist their first conference trophy in program history. With the win, VWU earns the ODAC's automatic bid into the NCAA Division III Tournament.

SPECIFICS
Result | #2 Virginia Wesleyan def. #1 Randolph-Macon, 3-1 (25-17, 15-25, 25-17, 29-27)
Venue | Crenshaw Gymansium at Randolph-Macon College
Records | Virginia Wesleyan (28-7; program record), Randolph-Macon (25-8)

HOW IT HAPPENED
 - net play characterized this match with both teams combining for 19 blocks; on many occasions, blocks provided a change of momentum as well as cushion in the score box
 - After R-MC enjoyed a 3-2 early lead in the first set, VWU earned 11 of the next 13 points en route to an 8-point lead in the first set; R-MC got as close as four points before the Marlins pushed out to a 25-17 win
 - the Yellow Jackets regrouped in the second set, posting the first five points of the frame and a 13-5 lead following its initial push; R-MC pushed down the pedal, rattling 9-of-10 points on the way to a 23-12 lead before closing with a 25-15 win
 - the right-side court again proved a winner in the third set, although the pacing differed from the previous stanzas with three times before either team reach 10 points; Virginia Wesleyan eventually worked its way to a 21-14 advantage with several 2-for-1 trades on the way to a 25-17 win
 - the fourth set was back to an early advantage for one school with VWU opened a 4-1 lead before R-MC pulled back to force three ties, the last at 9-9; VWU again climbed out a 3-point lead with R-MC responding for a 14-14 tie; that trend would continue with the Marlins pushing small leads only to see the Yellow Jackets storm back; R-MC fought off four match-point attempts before the Marlins got the final marker they needed via an Elizabeth Britton kill at 29-27

BEHIND THE NUMBERS
 - VWU middle Amber Matalus led all players with 18 kills at a .368 attack percentage; she added six digs and five assisted blocks; she was responsible for a match-best 20.5 points
 - Elizabeth Britton added 11 kills and 22 digs for VWU, while Alyssa Taylor picked up a match-high 24 digs; Kathryn Yeager hammered 8 kills while Greta Coss chipped in 7 kills; Sarah Brush came away with 16 digs
 - setters Meghan Wood and Haley Sutton had 24 assists each
 - Bailey Jones and Miranda Hall collected 16 and 15 kills, respectively, to lead R-MC's attack; Hall hit .343 while Jones posted a .297 attack percentage
 - Grace Parker registered 10 kills with a team-best 18 digs; Angela Tender led R-MC's four setters with 28 assists; Macguire Gubba added 13 helpers and 13 digs; Madison Warlick posted 15 digs

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Guilford | Tina Eucker
Randolph-Macon | Miranda Hall, Madison Warlick
Virginia Wesleyan | Elizabeth Britton, Amber Matalus, Alyssa Taylor
Washington and Lee | Courtney Berry

UP NEXT
The selection show for the NCAA Division III Tournament is slated for 12:30 p.m. ET on Monday, November 11. It will be aired on www.ncaa.com. Virginia Wesleyan will learn its destination for early round play, while Randolph-Macon, which was regionally ranked entering the weekend, will await to see if it earns an at-large bid to the field.