Volleyall Makes it Three for Webster; Gorloks Sweep Greenville in Three Sets to Win Tournament Championship
GREENVILLE, Ill. - Making it a perfect 'three for three' for Webster University this weekend in tournament play, the Gorloks volleyball team won the 2012 St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) Tournament by defeating top-seeded Greenville College in three straight sets.
It marks Webster's second consecutive Tournament Championship and their sixth in seven years.
Webster had split with Greenville during the regular season, losing 3-0 on Sept. 15, at Elsah, Ill., but assured themselves of a share of the SLIAC title with a 3-0 win on Oct. 9 over the Panthers at home. The Gorloks came into the match having won 14 straight matches vs. SLIAC opponents. Webster made it 15 straight, by downing the Panthers, 25-21, 25-21, 25-18.
Greenville defeated fourth-seeded Principia College in the first semifinal match of the day with a 25-18, 27-25, 25-18 victory in three straight sets. The Panthers advanced to the championship final for the fourth consecutive year with the win.
Webster narrowly made it to the championship final, defeating third-seeded Westminster College (Mo.), 3-2, in semifinal matchup. The feisty Blue Jays won the first set, 25-18, and led 22-16 in the second set...bidding for an upset. A Webster 8-0 run to end the set, made it a 25-22 Webster win to even the match at 1-1. Webster seemed take control at that point on, winning 25-16 in the third, but Westminster forced a tie-breaker with a 25-18 win in the fourth set. The Gorloks pulled ahead 12-8 and 14-10 in the fifth and deciding set and barely nipped the Blue Jays, 15-13, to advance.
The Gorloks have won a record ten titles in the 18-year history of the tournament. They are 24-9 on the season, and the 24 wins is the second highest single season total in the team's history, tied with the 1997 season and one win behind the 25 in 2007.
Webster advances to the NCAA Division III Tournament with the automatic qualifying bid. The tournament bracket will be announced on Monday, November 5.
Courtesy Webster University sports information
