14th-seeded Walters State opens NJCAA DII Volleyball Championship against 19th-seeded Carl Sandburg 

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA – 14th-seeded Walters State opens up the NJCAA DII Volleyball Championship on Wednesday, taking on 19th-seeded Carl Sandburg (IL) at 11 a.m. CT at Alliant Energy Powerhouse. 

The winner of Wednesday morning's match will play third-seeded Kirkwood at 7:30 p.m. CT. The loser will play on Thursday at 9 a.m. CT.

To stream Wednesday's match, visit https://www.njcaa.org/network/landing/index. Live stats can also be found at: https://njcaastats.prestosports.com/sports/wvball/2024-25/div2/boxscores/20241120_i5ou.xml.

The Matchup:

• This will be the first time Walters State and Carl Sandburg will square off against each other.

• Carl Sandburg enters Friday's match with a 35-10 record. The Chargers went 8-2 in the conference and were Midwest B District Champions.

• Walters State enters with a 26-5 record. The Lady Senators went 7-1 in the conference and were Southeast B District Champions.

• This is Walters State's third time in the NJCAA DII Volleyball Championship and second straight year in Cedar Rapids. Last season, the Lady Senators were the 18th-seed and went 2-2 in the Championship. Walters State defeated No. 15 Lansing (3-0), lost to No. 2 Scottsdale (3-1), beat No. 16 Rock Valley (3-1) and lost to No. 10 Heartland (3-1).

• This is Carl Sandberg's fourth time in the NJCAA DII Volleyball Championship. Most recently, Carl Sandberg made the Championship in 2021, where they went 0-2.

How They Got Here:

• Walters State qualified for the NJCAA DII Volleyball Championship after winning the Southeast B District in thrilling fashion, 3-2, over Cleveland Community College. 

• The Lady Senators fell behind two sets to one but forced a fifth set with a dominating 25-11 set four win. In the deciding set, the Lady Senators fought off a match point for the Yetis, before getting a match point of their own. Lauren Mims was on serve and landed an ace inside the backline for the winning point.

• In the match, Mims led the way with 11 kills, four aces and 25 digs. Veda Barton had nine kills, as well, while Alyssa Campbell and Rylee Haynie each had eight. Olivia Brown had 20 assists, and Emma Miller had 16 assists and two aces. Barton, Haynie and Catherine Sweeney each had five block assists. 

• The Chargers advanced to the Championship after winning a five-set thriller in the Midwest B District Championship over Moraine Valley Community College.  Carl Sandburg won the first and third sets and were tied 10-10 in the fifth set. However, the Chargers scored the final five points to take the match.

• In the match, Natalie Burden had 14 kills, while Ayla Cannon had nine kills and four blocks. Grace Vyhnanek had 47 assists, and Madeline Mooney and Abigail Shaffer had 31 digs each.

Players To Watch:

Walters State

• Lauren Mims – The TCCAA/Region 7 Tournament MVP, Mims has been outstanding for the Lady Senators. Mims finished second in the conference in kills with 287, fourth in service aces with 49, first in digs with 433 and ninth in total blocks with 46. 

• Rylee Haynie – Haynie was the TCCAA Freshman of the Year after a great season. Haynie was first in the conference with 111 total blocks and 1.04 blocks per set, third in hitting percentage at .316 and eighth in kills with 224. 

• Alyssa Campbell – Campbell was named to the All-TCCAA First Team in 2024.   Campbell was second in the conference with 93 total blocks, sixth in hitting percentage with .243 and had 184 kills.

Carl Sandburg 

• Taylor Wagner – A First-Team All-Region 4 Team member, Wagner is third in all of NJCAA DII with 577 kills. Wagner averaged 3.68 kills per set and totaled 419 assists. 

• Madeline Mooney – The Chargers libero, Mooney was a Second-Team All-Region 4 Team member. Mooney is third in the NJCAA DII with 903 digs and averages 5.72 kills per set. Mooney totaled 67 aces, as well. 

• Grace Vyhnanek – Vyhnanek led the country with 1405 assists and was second in Region 4 with 9.76 assists per set.