Top 20 Moments - Women's Volleyball

VOLLEYBALL - MOMENT #20
November 5-6, 2010
Centre College, who entered the 2010 SCAC tournament as the seven seed, makes a "Cinderella-like" run through the championships - defeating Oglethorpe, 3-0, before shocking second-seeded Southwestern University, 3-2, to advance to the semifinal round for the first time since 1997. The following day, the Colonels fell behind third-seeded DePauw University, 2-0, but fought back to even the match at 2-2 before falling 15-12 in the decisive fifth set. Centre rebounded, however, and earned its highest finish since the '97 tournament with a 3-2 victory over fourth-seeded and host Trinity University in the third/fourth place match. The move from seventh seed entering the championships to third-place tournament finish represents the largest jump up the standings in SCAC tournament history.

VOLLEYBALL - MOMENT #19
November 4, 1995
For the first time in league history, two SCAC teams are selected to the 32-team field for the NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball Championships. Southwestern University receives a bid after picking up its first SCAC title in any sport since joining the conference in 1994, defeating Trinity University, 3-2 in 1995 conference championship match and snapping the Tigers' 47-match conference winning streak. Trinity also receives a bid to the 1995 national tournament.

VOLLEYBALL - MOMENT #18
November 7, 1992
Playing on its home floor, Trinity University, after going 7-0 during the SCAC regular season, completes a five-match run in the tournament - including winning 15 of 16 games played - to win the school's first SCAC volleyball championship. The TU Tigers defeated Rhodes, 15-2, 15-11 and 15-4 in the championship match. Trinity also received at-large bid to the 1992 NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball Championships - the first-ever bid for a SCAC team in the sport of volleyball.

VOLLEYBALL - MOMENT #17
November 17, 2001
For the first time in league history, a SCAC school plays host to a NCAA Volleyball National Quarterfinal match, but the home court is not enough as Trinity drops a hard-fought decision to Juniata by a 3-1 score (30-23, 27-30, 30-25, 30-20). The Tigers end their season with a 35-5 mark.

VOLLEYBALL - MOMENT #16
November 13, 1999
Third-ranked Trinity University advances to the 1999 NCAA Division III national quarterfinals with a 15-10, 15-6, 15-2 victory over Savannah College of Art & Design in the finals of the South Region played at Emory University. The Tigers defeated Austin College (3-0) a day earlier to earn the trip to the region finals. With the South Region title, Trinity, in its eighth consecutive NCAA tournament appearance, becomes the first SCAC school to advance to the national volleyball quarterfinals.

VOLLEYBALL - MOMENT #15
November 12, 2009
Fifth-seeded Trinity University beats fourth-seeded Randolph-Macon (Va.) College, 3-1, in the opening round of the NCAA Division III South Region Volleyball Tournament at Southwestern University. The victory nets head coach Julie Jenkins her 700th career win, which ranks her among the top 10 active coaches in the nation for career victories.

VOLLEYBALL - MOMENT #14
November 8-10, 2007
For the second consecutive year, the SCAC sends four teams to the NCAA Division III Volleyball Tournament. SCAC champion and third-ranked Trinity is joined by 11th-ranked Austin College, 25th-ranked Colorado College and Southwestern University. Unlike the previous year, however, no SCAC is able to advance beyond the regional round.

VOLLEYBALL - MOMENT #13
October 5, 2005
Playing on the campus of University of Texas-San Antonio, Southwestern University defeats Trinity University, 3-0, snapping the Tigers' 61-match conference volleyball win streak. The match had been rescheduled from the first SCAC West Divisional (Sept. 22) due to Southwestern's inability to make it to Memphis because of the threat of bad weather. It was Trinity's first defeat in conference play since a 3-2 loss to Centre on November 5, 2000.

VOLLEYBALL - MOMENT #12
November 7, 1998
A day after Trinity University defeated a spirited DePauw University squad 3-2 in the championship match of the 1998 SCAC Volleyball Tournament at Rose-Hulman, the conference is awarded with three spots in the NCAA Tournament - an all-time league high at that time. Trinity and DePauw, along with Southwestern University, receive bids into the field of 48.

VOLLEYBALL - MOMENT #11
November 26, 1991
Trinity University sophomore women's volleyball player Amy Waddell, the SCAC Player-of-the-Year, is named second team AVCA Division III all-America, thus becoming the school's and the SCAC's first female selection for national honors in any sport. Waddell would go on to earn SCAC Player-of-the-Year honors in 1992 and 1993 and become the first (and to date only) player in league history to earn Player-of-the-Year honors three times in their career.

VOLLEYBALL - MOMENT #10
November 13, 1997
Just one week after losing to the Pirates in the finals of the 2007 SCAC Volleyball Tournament, Trinity University defeats Southwestern University 12-15, 15-6, 15-10, 17-15 to advance to the second round of the NCAA Division III Volleyball Championship. The match marks the first time that two SCAC schools have played each other in an NCAA volleyball postseason match. Trinity is eliminated the following day in the South Region semifinals by the host school Washington (Mo.) University.

VOLLEYBALL - MOMENT #9
October 26, 1991
In a battle of undefeated teams, Rhodes College defeats Trinity University 3-15, 15-13, 15-9, 11-15 and 15-10 to finish a perfect 5-0 in conference play and win the first SCAC women's volleyball championship. After one season of round-robin play, the SCAC puts in a post-season volleyball tournament for determining its league champion beginning in 1992.

VOLLEYBALL - MOMENT #8
November 3, 2007
After reinstating a postseason conference tournament for the first time since 1999, third-ranked Trinity University secured its 10th consecutive SCAC championship with a 3-2 victory over host Austin College in the title game. The Tigers battled back from an 0-2 deficit to earn the title - the only time that a team has fallen behind 0-2 and come back to win in the SCAC championship match. 

VOLLEYBALL - MOMENT #7
December 7, 2002
A night after losing to Washington (Mo.) University in the national semifinals, Trinity University defeats Juniata (Pa.) College (3-0) in the consolation match of the 2002 NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball Championships. It is the second-highest finish ever for a SCAC team in the national tournament - following Trinity's second-place finish in 1999.

VOLLEYBALL - MOMENT #6
November 9-11, 2006
When the 2006 NCAA tournament field is announced, the SCAC receives a league-record four bids to the 60-team field. In addition to SCAC champion Trinity, first-year member Austin College, Rhodes College and Southwestern University each receive at-large bids. The tournament appearance is the first-ever for the Rhodes' volleyball program. All four teams won their first tournament match with Trinity and Rhodes both advancing to its regional final. Trinity defeated Emory (Ga.) University 3-1 to win the program's fourth South Region championship, but Rhodes lost 3-0 to Washington (Mo.) Univerity in the Central Region final.

VOLLEYBALL - MOMENT #5
November 19, 2004
Trinity University senior setter Ashley Farrimond is named a First Team AVCA all-America selection, making her the first and only volleyball player in SCAC history to earn all-American honors four times in her career. At that time, she was just the fifth player in Division III history to earn the honor all four years.

VOLLEYBALL - MOMENT #4
November 9, 2008
Trinity University wins its 11th consecutive SCAC volleyball championship with a 3-0 victory over DePauw University on the campus of Rhodes College. Trinity, ranked No. 12 nationally and seeded No. 2 in the SCAC tournament, beat fourth-seeded DePauw by scores of 25-11, 25-19, and 25-21. The 11 consecutive conference volleyball titles ties for the fourth longest consecutive championship streak in CAC/SCAC history for any one sports program.

VOLLEYBALL - MOMENT #3
November 5, 2000
At the 2000 SCAC Volleyball Cross Divisional #2 at Southwestern University, Centre College falls behind 2-0 to nationally-ranked Trinity University, only to come back and earn a 3-2 victory (13-15, 8-15, 15-10, 15-11, 16-14), handing the Tigers their first SCAC regular season loss since Oct. 26, 1991 (against Rhodes) and snapping a string of 77 consecutive regular season conference wins. The 77 consecutive wins represented the longest conference regular-season winning streak of any team in any sport. 

VOLLEYBALL - MOMENT #2
November 14, 2009
For the first time in league history, the SCAC sends two teams to the national quarterfinals in the same season. Trinity University advances to the round of eight with a 3-0 (25-19, 25-20, 25-17) win over SCAC foe Southwestern University in the South regional final - the fourth straight year that the two league rivals have met in the NCAA tournament. With the win, the TU Tigers advance to their fifth quarterfinal under head coach Julie Jenkins and first since 2006. In the West regional, Colorado College caps a come-from-behind 3-2 win (25-19, 20-25, 21-25, 25-19, 15-9) win over La Verne to record the program's first-ever volleyball regional title and advance to its first NCAA quarterfinal. The CC Tigers trailed two sets to one and 7-3 in the fifth set, before they posted a 12-2 run to close out the set and eventually earn the win.

VOLLEYBALL - MOMENT #1
December 4-5, 1999
At the 1999 Volleyball Final Four at Juniata College, Trinity University defeats Muskingum College 3-0 (16-14, 15-11, 15-1) in the semifinals to advance to the following day’s national title game. The Tiger’s national championship dreams end on Saturday, however, as top-ranked, undefeated and defending national champion Central (Iowa) College beats Trinity in three straight, 15-8, 16-14, 15-7.

Trinity ends its season with a 38-3 mark and becomes just the second SCAC team in any sport to play for a national championship (Trinity women’s tennis – 1997). Tiger head coach Julie Jenkins (pictured above left) is later honored as the American Volleyball Coaches Association Division III Coach-of-the-Year.

For more on the top SCAC Volleyball moment, including interviews with Coach Julie Jenkins and former Tiger and two-time all-America setter Desiree Pratt Gooselink, click here.