Sioux City, IA – The ninth-seeded Cumberlands volleyball team saw its historic season come to a close Friday afternoon, falling 3-2 (24-26, 25-20, 22-25, 25-17, 8-15) to No. 8 McPherson in the second match of NAIA National Championship pool play at the Tyson Events Center. The loss is UC's first and only setback of the year, as the Patriots conclude the season with a remarkable 36-1 record—setting new program standards at every turn.
In a match defined by long rallies, defensive grit, and momentum swings, UC fought until the final point.
Brynnley Bryant led the Patriots with 17 kills, adding 11 digs and three aces for a team-high 21 points.
Sara Zampedri followed with 16 kills and a season-high 17 digs for her 13th double-double of the season.
Kara Gipson was highly efficient in the middle, posting 13 kills on .480 hitting along with three block assists.
Elaina Fischer added 14 kills at a .393 clip and five blocks in one of her performances of the season.
Setter
Savanah Jolly steadied UC's offense throughout the five-set battle, finishing with 55 assists, 14 digs, and four kills.
Davey Slaughter anchored the back row with a match-high 25 digs, while
Autiana Wilson contributed 10 digs and two aces as UC tallied eight service aces and 17 total team blocks on the afternoon.
McPherson edged UC late in a tightly contested opening set, taking it 26-24, but the Patriots responded immediately. Cumberlands dominated the second with a .378 hitting percentage, led by Fischer and Gipson, to even the match 1-1.
The third set saw both teams trade leads 11 times before McPherson pulled away late to win 25-22.
UC answered with conviction in the fourth, using an 8-1 run to flip a 9-6 deficit into a 14-10 lead. Bryant and Zampedri combined for nine kills in the frame as the Patriots controlled the rest of the set to take it 25-17 and force a decisive fifth.
In the fifth, the Bulldogs surged early and never looked back to the secure the pool's quarterfinal berth.
Though the season ends in Sioux City, it was a season full of firsts for the Patriots as they finish with the greatest year in program history—recording a 36-1 overall mark, their first MSC regular-season title, second tournament championship in the last three years, as well as their first-ever NAIA Final Site victory.
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