The AAC Season came down to one final match as No. 6 seed Florida Atlantic and No. 4 seed Wichita State (20-13, 13-6 AAC) met in the AAC Championship Final. A win for either squad would mean an NCAA Tournament berth while the loser would most likely miss out on the tournament. Wichita State took command of the match from start-to-finish, earning the conference title and NCAA bid over the Owls.
Set One
Wichita State took control of the match early earning a 7-2 lead in the first set. The Shockers then extended their lead to six as the Owls called a timeout: 10-4 WSU. After the timeout, FAU responded, cutting the lead down to two: 11-9 at the Wichita State timeout. Florida Atlantic brought the deficit within one, the Shockers used a 4-0 run; taking a 17-12 advantage over the Owls. After trading attacks FAU answered the WSU run by scoring three points in a row to get back in the set: 20-18 Shockers. The squads traded points again, but Wichita State pulled away, taking set one at 25-22.
Set Two
Wichita State opened the second set with a 4-1 lead after an Olivia Hart serve (pictured above, Evert Nelson and The American). The second set worked to even thanks to a couple of Valeria Rosado kills and a Madison Dyer block: 8-8. FAU and WSU fought back and forth until the Owls found a 12–10 lead. The Shockers evened the set at 14, but at the media timeout, Florida Atlantic had the 15-14 advantage. Wichita State took the lead at 18-17 as coach Fernanda Nelson called a timeout in search of an important set two victory. The Shockers answered, scoring two more points to give themselves a 20-17 advantage. FAU brought the set within one, but WSU closed out the set on a 5-0 run to earn the victory at 25-19.
Up to that point, the Shockers had not dropped a set since the tournament started as Wichita State was 8-0 in all sets played. FAU came back in Saturday’s match after the Owls fell behind 2-0 against Rice but a .110 hit% was not going to get the job done.
Set Three
It seemed to be the Shockers match and the Owls were just a part of it as Wichita State jumped all over Florida Atlantic to open the third set; 6-2 WSU. FAU responded with a 5-0 run, taking the lead away from the Shockers; 7-6 Owls. Wichita State answered back with a three-point run of their own, taking the lead at 9-7. The Shockers extended their lead at 11-8 as Florida Atlantic called a timeout in hopes of slowing down Wichita State. FAU had no answer for WSU as the Shockers stretched their lead by six thanks to a 4-0 run: 16-10 Wichita State. The set continued in the favor of black and yellow as the Shockers earned a 20-12 lead. Unlike the previous two matches in the tournament for the Owls, no comeback was had as Wichita State took the third set 25-19 earning the AAC Championship title.
Rosado earned 11 kills as the Owls earned 36 off of a .158 hit%. Victoria Hensley had 28 assists. Isabelle Northam gained 12 digs leading Florida Atlantic in their total of 46. Dyer gained two blocks leading FAU with their total of three. Offensively, Florida Atlantic seemed to be tired, which makes sense after playing back-to-back five set contests.
There was good news for Florida Atlantic though as two players made the all-tournament team: Valeria Rosado and Katelynn Robine.
FAU’s (20-13, 10-9 AAC) season will most likely end thanks to the Shockers. The Owls finished with the same record as they did last season. Thanks to the tournament, Florida Atlantic earned the runner-up position in the American Athletic.