Top Seeds North Greenville, Francis Marion to Play for Conference Carolinas Women’s Volleyball Championship

11/19/2021 9:34:14 PM

BRISTOL, Tenn. – A first-time Conference Carolinas Women’s Volleyball Tournament Champion will be crowned on Saturday as both No. 1 seeds, Francis Marion and North Greenville, advanced to the championship match. The two will meet at King University in Bristol, Tennessee at 3 p.m.

The first semifinal featured East No. 1 Francis Marion and West No. 2 Emmanuel and it didn’t disappoint the nearly 200 fans in attendance as the teams needed five sets to earn a spot in the championship match. The first set was dominated by the Patriots, 25-14, and it looked as though they would roll to their second sweep of the Lions this season, but Emmanuel didn’t back down. After FMU hit .393 in the first set, the Emmanuel defense stepped up and held them to a -.077 mark in set two which enabled EC to go on a 15-4 run to turn a 17-10 deficit into a 25-21 win. Set three needed extra points and it was the Lions who pulled it out 27-25. In set four, the teams were evenly matched until FMU used a 6-1 run to break a tie at 11 and never looked back in a 25-20 win to force set five.

The decisive fifth set saw three ties with the last coming at 8-8. Emmanuel held the early lead, 7-4, but Francis Marion responded with an 8-1 rally to take a 12-8 lead that they never relinquished in the 15-11 win.

The second semifinal saw West No. 1 North Greenville dominate East No. 2 UNC Pembroke, 3-0, to earn the program's second consecutive trip to the tournament final. In the first set, the Crusaders jumped out to a 4-1 lead and never looked back in a 25-18 win. In set two, the Tigerville, South Carolina program hit an astounding .462 (13-1-26) en route to a 25-7 win. The final set was closer, but the Crusaders once again took an early lead and never looked back in a 25-18 win for the semifinal sweep.

The tournament champion receives the automatic bid to the NCAA Division II Women’s Volleyball Championship.

Fans can watch every game of the tournament live via the Conference Carolinas Digital Network and BlueFrame at conferencecarolinasdn.com. Information regarding the championship schedule, tickets and bracket is available here.

2021 Conference Carolinas Fall Women’s Volleyball Championship
First Round – Saturday, November 13
East #4 Belmont Abbey def. East #5 Barton, 3-2 (Box Score)
West #4 Erskine def. West #5 Lees-McRae, 3-0 (Box Score)

Second Round – Saturday, November 13
East #3 Mount Olive def. East #4 Belmont Abbey, 3-2 (Box Score)
West #4 Erskine def. West #3 King, 3-2 (Box Score)

Quarterfinals – Tuesday, November 16
West #2 Emmanuel def. East #3 Mount Olive, 3-0 (Box Score)
East #2 UNC Pembroke def. West #4 Erskine, 3-0 (Box Score)

Semifinals – Friday, November 19 (King University – Bristol, Tenn.)
East #1 Francis Marion def. West #2 Emmanuel, 3-2 (Box Score)
West #1 North Greenville def. East #2 UNC Pembroke, 3-0 (Box Score)

Final – Saturday, November 20 (King University – Bristol, Tenn.)
East #1 Francis Marion vs. West #1 North Greenville, 3 p.m.