Point Lookout, M.O. – The top two seeds, #1 Columbia International University and #2 Grace College, swept their way to the 2025 NCCAA DI Women’s Volleyball National Championship match, as both teams picked up 3-0 victories in the semifinals on Friday, December 5. 
 
#1 Columbia International University 3, #3 Ohio Christian University 0
 
Top-seeded Columbia International University reached the NCCAA DI Women’s Volleyball National Championship match for the third time in the last five years, knocking off #3 Ohio Christian University in three sets in the semifinal match.

• Aliah Snider continued her hot streak this week in the first frame, picking up three straight service aces to give Ohio Christian a 3-0 lead. Columbia International answered with a run of their own, as back-to-back kills from Mary Norwood and a pair of kills from Zcearia James helped the Rams rattle off six straight points to put CIU ahead 8-4. A kill from Hailey Sembach helped the Trailblazers tie the contest at 11-11, but CIU answered with another run, scoring nine unanswered points thanks to two aces from Maria Ferreira and a block by Eevy Bellar and James pushed Columbia International ahead 20-11. OCU responded with a quick burst of their own, as two kills from Kennedy Bowling cut the CIU lead to 20-15, but another block from Bellar and James ended the run. Norwood and Lydia Gustafson got in on the block party for the Rams to earn set point, and another Norwood strike gave Columbia International the set one victory, 25-21.
• Set two saw a pair of 3-0 runs early for both sides, with two kills from Julia Orndorf helping Ohio Christian tie the set 5-5. Carlee Groneveld got in on the scoring for Columbia International, picking up two kills to put CIU ahead, before Katelynn Mundy added a pair of strikes to swell the Ram lead to 13-9. A block from Norwood and Bellar forced an OCU timeout, but Gustafson kept the Rams attack on top, and the CIU lead grew to 21-14. After a block from Kynedi Davis and Bowling extended the set for Ohio Christian, three straight Trailblazer errors ended the set, and Columbia International took the second set 25-17 to take a 2-0 advantage.
• Both teams traded points early in the third set, but Ohio Christian took the first real lead for either side, as a block from Madison Poyer and Lydia Watson and a kill by Snider put the Trailblazers up 9-6. Columbia International answered with another scoring run, as a pair of Mundy kills along with an ace from Mangum and another kill from James put the Rams ahead 13-10. Another block from Bowling and Watson helped Ohio Christian cut the deficit to 16-14, but another set of kills from Mundy and Bellar swelled the CIU lead to 22-16. James added another kill to her tally to earn match point for the Rams, and an error from OCU was the nail in the coffin, and Columbia International took set three 25-17 and advance to the championship match with a 3-0 victory.
• Both James and Norwood added 11 kills for CIU, with James tallying one dig and three block assists and hitting .321 in the match, while Norwood had two digs and three block assists. Bellar stuffed the stat sheet for Columbia International, with seven kills and just one error on 15 attacks to hit .400, adding five digs and five block assists.
• Despite the loss, Snider had another great game for Ohio Christian, recording six kills, 15 assists, and 18 digs.

 
#2 Grace College 3, #8 Sterling College 0
 
For the third year in a row, #2 Grace College will play in the NCCAA DI Women’s Volleyball National Championship match, as the Lancers held on to sweep #8 Sterling College 3-0 in the final semifinal match.

• Both teams traded the lead in the first set for a bit, before a pair of Kodie Herd kills gave Sterling the 6-5 lead, and a Chloe Schmidt connection put the Warriors up 8-7. Callie Jo Celichowski and Leah Henderson teamed up for a block to give Grace the lead, and Celichowski added a kill to put the Lancers on top 11-10. The run continued for Grace, as Levyn Snow and Livia Tate connected on another block, and an ace from Emma Blackford forced a Sterling timeout, with the Lancers ahead 16-11. A big block from Celichowski and Molly Hofman kept the run going for Grace, and a kill from Snow put the Lancers up 24-14. The set ended in favor of Grace 25-14 after a serve from the Warriors went long, and the defending national champions took a 1-0 lead.
• Grace opened the second set on a roll, picking up six straight points thanks to a kill from Anna Elkin and a pair of blocks from Henderson and Tate to go on top 6-0. An ace from Blackford swelled the Lancer lead to 9-2, and after a kill by Herd cut the lead in half, Reagan Owens picked up an ace of her own to push the Grace lead to 15-7. Tate added two more kills, and a Hofman kill put Grace up 19-9. Three straight errors by the Lancers gave Sterling some life, and a kill from Chloe Schmidt cut the Grace advantage down to 21-15. Elkin recorded a kill to earn match point, and a spike from Henderson ended set two in favor of the Lancers 25-17, with Grace taking a 2-0 lead into set three.
• The third set opened with Grace College again taking advantage of errors by the Warriors, and a kill from Tate put the Lancers up 8-4. An ace from Reese McCutchan swelled the lead to 12-5, and a Brea Harris kill made it 13-6. Two kills from Aliya McClanahan cut the Grace lead down to four, but a pair of Elkin strikes pushed the Lancers up 16-9. With their backs against the wall, Sterling went on a late run, sparked by kills from Wilson and Abi Howard, and trailed just 20-17. However, the two teams traded points, and while a Chloe Schmidt kill kept the Warriors down just two, a service into the net ended any sort of upset bid for Sterling, and Grace College survived set three 25-22, and took the match 3-0.
• Elkin paced Grace College with nine kills on 16 total attacks and just one error, hitting .500 for the match while adding three digs. Hofman finished the night with six kills on 16 attacks with no errors to hit .375 on the night, adding two block assists and two digs.
• In her final game of the tournament, McClanahan again excelled for Sterling, picking up 15 kills on 28 attacks with just two errors to hit .464, adding one block assist. 

The 2025 NCCAA DI Women’s Volleyball National Championship match between #1 Columbia International University and #2 Grace College is set for Saturday, December 6 at 1:00 pm CT from Keeter Gymnasium on the campus of College of the Ozarks. Live stats and live video of the national championship match, along with box scores from every match of the 2025 NCCAA DI Women’s Volleyball National Championship can be found here.
 
About the NCCAA
Established in 1968, the National Christian College Athletic Association uses intercollegiate athletics to further the Great Commission and is committed to equipping student-athletes and coaches to make a positive impact for Christ. The NCCAA currently holds 23 national championship events, along with one national invitational for 88 member schools across 28 states and two Canadian provinces. For more information on the NCCAA, visit our website, thenccaa.org, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter/X, and Instagram at @thenccaa.