PENSACOLA, Fla. – The University of West Florida volleyball team won its fifth consecutive Gulf South Conference Volleyball Championship on Sunday, sweeping Union at the UWF Field House. The title is the 11th in UWF's history.
 
"This feels awesome," head coach Melissa Wolter said. "This year has been really special. We've come a long way as a team, and to be able to see two of our veteran players, our seniors, give everything they had… this was a great day."
 
Senior setter Taylor Vaneekeren was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player, while Kierra Potts and Avery Rodgers also earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team. Vaneekeren once again led the UWF offense with 34 assists, and she added a pair of aces, nine digs, and eight kills.
 
"Your senior year title is the most special one," Vaneekeren said. "I'm on top of the world right now because I got to win another title with my team. We trained so hard during the week and we were more than prepared to win a championship today. The individual awards are one thing, and they motivate me to be better, but all week, my only focus was getting this trophy. At the end of the day, the only thing that matters is winning championships."
 
Rodgers was one of three Argonauts with 10 kills on the day, joining Camila Vazquez and Jenna Zydlo, and Potts totaled three blocks while added three kills and five digs.
 
By winning the conference championship, UWF secured an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, which begins later this week.
 
The first two sets were back and forth affairs. UWF took its first lead of the day at 9-8 in the first set, and an emphatic block from Potts stretched the lead to 14-9 before a Union timeout.
 
After the Lady Bulldogs gained a little ground, UWF ran off four consecutive points to finish the set with a 25-21 win. Those came from kills from Vazquez and Rodgers, a Vaneekeren ace, and a solo block from Alex Oliver.
 
"We're always talking about finding our new thing, and I think that showed today," Vaneekeren said. "A lot of our hitters are young but they stepped up in big moments, and that's awesome to see."
 
The next frame would be another tough one for both sides, with nine lead changes in the second set. West Florida trailed 12-9 before a timeout, and followed that by scoring six of the next eight points to lead 15-14.
 
Wolter called her second timeout of the set while trailing 23-21.
 
"The second set was huge for us," Wolter said. "We were in that same situation yesterday and I think we were able to pull from that and not panic. Our girls knew what they wanted, and I thought they did a really good job on the block."
 
The Argos responded to the timeout by picking up a kill from Vazquez and a block from Rodgers and Zydlo, before Rodgers and Zydlo finished off the 25-23 win with a kill each.
 
The third set was far less dramatic, as UWF got as much as a nine-point lead in the middle of the set and cruised to a 25-17 victory and the sweep.
 
The title is the 114th for West Florida athletics, across its 15 intercollegiate programs.
 
UWF earned an NCAA Tournament bid by winning the conference championship and will await its seeding for the tournament. The NCAA Selection show is Sunday night on NCAA.com at 9:30 pm.
   
2022 GULF SOUTH CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Taylor Vaneekeren (UWF; Most Outstanding Player)
Avery Rodgers (UWF)
Kierra Potts (UWF)
Emily Grace Calhoon (Union)
Jordan Vick (Union)
Ylenia De Mango (Auburn Montgomery)
Jillian Morgan (Montevallo)