Viterbo women’s volleyball has been an example of success for years. This season posed a challenge due to many circumstances that were out of their control; after being ranked in the top ten for the last two seasons, the women’s team enters the second of the season as an unranked team. The second half of the season saw the V-hawks return to form, with the women’s team cracking the top 25 coaching poll once again. The women’s team was able to move up three spots in the final poll from 20 to 17.
During an interview with the Lumen, Coach Delong he said most of this team is battle-tested and is used to being ranked. He said they are fortunate to be there this season with all the challenges they faced. The biggest obstacle they have had to face was the fall season with COVID sidelining some athletes in the season. However, Coach Delong saw the fire in the eyes of the team after not performing to the level they are used to in the fall; this included missing the top 25. The women’s team, however, was able to fight back into the top 25 polls, only losing one match since the season resumed in March.
When the women’s team entered the second half of the season, they knew they were going to have to fight to make some noise in the postseason. Coach Delong praised the team for staying focused on its goals and has been thankful that COVID has not sidelined any of their key players. This allowed the team to focus on and completely sweep its conference in the second half of the season, going 8-0 in conference play since the beginning of March and finishing the regular season with a conference record of 10-4.
When asked about the preparation for the conference tournament, Coach Delong said with the pandemic and everything happening around them, they will have to bring in a new form of preparation for the team. But the good thing is this is going to be a new kind of preparation for everyone on the other teams as well. He says he will take it one game at a time and not overlook any opponent.
Coach Delong prepared the team well for the conference tournament as they opened up the tournament with a 3-0 win against Presentation College. The team continued this dominance with a hard-fought victory over Mayville State University beating them 3-2. In the championship game April 10, the V-Hawks fought off Bellevue University in a comeback victory to secure their seventh conference championship under Coach Delong, which brings his conference tournament record to 27-10.
On April 17, the V-Hawks will be facing off against Madonna University in the opening round of the national tournament. This will be Viterbo’s eighth appearance in the national tournament. Coach Delong and the seniors on the team are no strangers to national success as they have competed in the final four for the past three seasons. Since Coach Delong took over in 2005, the V-Hawks have qualified for the national tournament seven times and have seen the final four five times. This national tournament will be a true test for the V-Hawks who have regained their core and look to make a jump to the championship game after three years of losing in the final four. The opening round game will take place on April 17 at Viterbo.
