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MSU Denver volleyball defeats Wingate, advances to first NCAA Division II Final Four

The MSU Denver volleyball team’s historic season will continue.

Playing in the program’s first NCAA Elite Eight, the No. 4 seeded Roadrunners rallied from down 2-1 to beat No. 5 Wingate (24-26, 25-16, 15-25, 25-22, 15-13) on Thursday at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D.

MSU Denver (30-3) advances to the Final Four where it will meet Tampa at 6 p.m. Friday in the national semifinal. Tampa beat Ferris State 3-2 (25-15, 25-17, 14-25, 25-27, 15-11).

The Roadrunners have won 21 straight matches, which is the team’s longest winning streak since 2022. Wingate had won 30 in a row before the loss on Thursday.

“That was an amazing match and I am just so proud of my team,” MSU Denver head coach Jenny Glenn said postgame. “From the first day of preseason we talked about having to stay down on defense and stay disciplined in that space, and we don’t beat that team without that tonight.”

RMAC Defensive Player of the Year Alyssa Boyte led the team with five blocks. Brooke Gennerman had 17 kills, Gabrielle Brewer contributed 25 assists and Karyna Werley had 26 digs.

The Roadrunners’ Mia Accomazzo stuffed the stat sheet in the comeback victory. She had four aces, seven assists and 22 digs. With the Roadrunners down 18-17 in the fourth set and facing elimination, Accomazzo and the team started their rally to force a fifth set before claiming the match.

“We just have so much belief in what we’re doing,” Accomazzo said. “It doesn’t waver no matter what.”

The Roadrunners lost senior All-American Annika Helf due to injury after the second set. Junior Megan Hagar was thrust into the lineup and delivered nine kills and 14 digs.

“Megan was fully prepared to step in. She played a lot earlier in the season, and did just a great job tonight,” Glenn said. “I’m proud of her for having confidence while being on the biggest stage we’ve ever played on.”

Now MSU Denver’s tournament run faces an even bigger challenge. The Roadrunners will face a Tampa team that is unbeaten and the top seed in the NCAA Division II Tournament.

“It feels great and we will go celebrate for like 30 minutes like we usually do,” Accomazzo said. “Then it’s on to the next.”

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