Samford Volleyball is in the Big Dance, as the team punched their ticket to the 2022 NCAA Tournament with a SoCon Championship victory over Furman. This is the fifth SoCon Tournament title in seven seasons under Head Coach Keylor Chan. When asked to recall the season, Coach Chan said that “the main concept for this group was resilience.”
“[The team] had a tough preseason where we played a lot of teams that really challenged us,” Senior Emily Naubert said.
Despite the early challenges, the Bulldogs have peaked at the right time. Various players impacted the team’s run in the SoCon Tournament, as Gracie Lynn Butler, Kenya McQuirter, and Kate Wonus were named to the All-Tournament team. McQuirter was also awarded Tournament MVP.
Chan said that his team’s success has been “all about legacy moments” and that “working to be your best in that moment is something the program has created over generations.”
Hopefully, the Bulldogs will have another “legacy moment” this Friday, Dec. 2, as the team will take on the Louisville Cardinals in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Cardinals are one of four No. 1 seeds in the tournament, so if Samford wants to claim victory, the Bulldogs will have to play a nearly flawless match.
“Louisville is a one seed for a reason,” Chan said. “They’ve beaten a lot of good teams and have a lot of experience on the floor. It’s about the tournament now. It’s about knowing that you’ve earned the right to play in this event and being our best when it’s mattered most. We’ll go in, prepare, and put our best foot forward.”
The Bulldogs and Cardinals will battle it out Friday, Dec. 2, at 6:00 p.m.
Sports Editor
