KOKOMO, Ind. -- The 2021 season has been a historic one for the Midway women's volleyball team and on Saturday (Nov. 13) it culminated as they punched their ticket to the 2021 NAIA Women's Volleyball National Championship Opening Round for the first time in program history.

The Eagles snatched the second automatic berth from the River States Conference following a sweep of IU East (Ind.) in the RSC Tournament Semifinals as they advanced to the championship match where they finished runner-up to IU Kokomo (Ind.), the regular season champion.

By way of finishing runner-up to the Cougars, the Eagles now advance to the NAIA Women's Volleyball National Championship Opening Round which is set to be contested on November 20 in 24 opening round matches played on campus sites nationwide.

Jonea Rima's club will find out their fate on Monday (Nov. 15) at 11 a.m. ET when the qualifiers will be announced via selection show hosted on the PlayNAIA Facebook page.

RSC Semifinal Recap: Midway 3, IU East 0

Earlier in the season, IU East handed Midway their second loss of the season with a 3-0 sweep, but on Saturday, the Eagles turned the tables and eliminated the Red Wolves from the conference tournament with a 3-0 sweep (25-22, 26-24, 25-20) of their own.

Midway got off to a bit of a slow start as they faced a 15-6 deficit early in the first set. The Eagles, however, chipped away and cut the deficit to 21-19 where they took control. A kill by Alysha Tullar (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.) sparked a 6-1 run that was capped by a thunderous kill from Meghan Adams (Hopkinsville, Ky.) sealing the 25-22 opening set win.

The second set was opposite of the first as Midway soared to a 16-9 lead only to see the Red Wolves battle back. IU East tied the set at 21 before holding two match points with a 24-22 advantage.

An IU East service error made it 24-23 before another kill by Tullar tied the set for the fifth time at 24 apiece. Midway's defense then capped a 4-0 run with a pair of block assists. Adams and Aubry Koester (Apple Valley, Calif.) teamed together to give Midway set point, while Adams jumped with Tullar for another block to clinch the 26-24 win and a 2-0 lead overall.

The third set saw three ties, but no lead changes after Midway scored the opening point. IU East cut a three-point deficit to one at 16-15, but once again it was Midway's defense that took over.

Regann Jessee (Columbus, Ind.) highlighted a 3-0 run with a solo block from the middle before Koester served an ace forcing IU East to call a timeout. Holding a 22-20 lead, Midway turned to their fifth-year senior to bring home the win.

Alysha Tullar did just that as she put down three consecutive kills to clinch the 25-20 win and the sweep sending her team to the NAIA National Championship. In the process, Tullar also surpassed a career milestone as she eclipsed 1,000 kills in her three years at Midway.

Tullar led the offensive attack for the Eagles with 12 kills and a .296 hitting clip. Aubry Koester added eight kills and two service aces, while Meghan Adams turned in yet another terrific performance. The freshman carded eight kills and hit .294, while she also carded six block assists in the victory.

Valerie Ramos (San Juan, Puerto Rico) and Evelyn Milburn (Versailles, Ky.) carded 28 and 11 assists, respectively, while Mariana Rodriguez (Houston, Texas) recorded a match-high 18 digs.

As a team, the Eagles carded 44 kills and finished with a .283 hitting percentage. They also finished with 10 total blocks holding IU East to a .150 attacking clip.

RSC Championship Recap: IU Kokomo 3, Midway 0

The championship match featured a rubber match between rivals in the RSC West Division. The two teams split their two regular season matches and in the title match, the Cougars got the best of the Eagles and won the championship with a 3-0 sweep (25-16, 25-22, 25-18).

Midway found themselves playing catchup throughout the first set after IU Kokomo jumped to a 5-1 lead. The lead grew to nine following a 6-0 run as the home team won the first set 25-16.

The second stanza was back-and-forth until the Eagles took a brief 11-10 lead following back-to-back kills by Tori Richman (Fort Wayne, Ind.) and Meghan Adams. The Cougars answered with a 5-0 run and took a 20-15 lead.

The Eagles wouldn't go away as they cut the deficit to 23-21 forcing IU Kokomo to call a quick timeout. The Cougars then scored two of the final three points to seal the 25-22 second set win and take a 2-0 lead.

Midway put together their best offense in the third set, but so did the Cougars. The Eagles carded 13 kills and hit .258, while IU Kokomo recorded 17 kills and posted a .517 hitting percentage as they sealed the sweep with the 25-18 win.

Aubry Koester led the offensive attack with 12 kills, while Brooke Trompler added seven kills in the loss. Valerie Ramos dished out 22 assists and Evenly Milburn had nine, while Mariana Rodriguez once again led the defensive effort with 15 digs.

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