Pittsburgh, Pa. - Fordham Volleyball's run in the 2021 Atlantic 10 Championship continued on Saturday in impressive fashion, knocking off second-seeded VCU, 25-23, 20-25, 25-21, 25-23, to reach its first-ever championship match in program history. The Rams improve to 10-18 on the year heading into their showdown with regular season champion Dayton on Sunday.
"It's not how you start, it's how you finish." Head coach
Ian Choi said, "Tremendous team effort tonight but special shout-out to
Lauryn Sweeney, a true freshmen who only had some scattered playing time throughout the season, but I knew she had it in her. She's demonstrated all year a senior-level mentality and maturity as a competitor. This team is peaking at the right moment and I can't express enough how proud I am of their grit and togetherness."
Fordham dropped its first set in Friday's quarterfinal before rallying for the win, but on Saturday they opened strong. The Rams lost sophomore
Whitley Moody after that opening set but shook it off after dropping the second set, fighting for every point to win in four.
Stepping in for Moody was freshman
Lauryn Sweeney, who posted a season-best seven kills. Also stepping up on offense was
Izzy Fichtel and
Bella Ureña, each finishing with 13 kills,
Aria De La Rosa, with 12, and
Claire O'Neil, with eight.
The defense piled up 83 digs, continually extending rallies and giving the offense a chance to win each point.
Mallory Lipski led the way with 28, while
Megan Brzozowski added 15 and
Ryan Naumann 13. Sweeney also produced nine. Brzozowski finished with 47 assists for her double-double. At the net, the defense compiled 5.5 blocks, led by Fichtel's five, one solo.
Fordham and Dayton will square off for the Atlantic 10 championship on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. on ESPN+.
