The College of DuPage women's volleyball team captured its third consecutive NJCAA Division III Region 4 championship Tuesday, Oct. 28, defending its home court with a commanding sweep of UW-Whitewater at Rock County. The Chaparrals opened the match with an emphatic 25-5 victory in the first set before completing the championship-clinching performance.
DuPage showcased a balanced offensive attack, with three players finishing just shy of or reaching double-digit kills. Wendalynn Pollak led the Chaparrals with 13 kills, while Zoey Aldarondo added 10 and Laila Lawson contributed nine.
Addisyn Gardner directed the Chaparrals' offense with 24 assists and continued her strong serving season with three service aces. Aldarondo also recorded three aces as DuPage kept UW-Whitewater at Rock County under pressure throughout the match.
Defensively, Amani Harrington paced the Chaparrals with six digs. Pollak, Claire Rambasek and Jamie Loftus each added five digs, while Isabella Furmanski led the team at the net with 2.5 total blocks. Lawson contributed two blocks.
Head coach Tolis Koskinaris, who was named Region 4 Coach of the Year following the match, credited the collective effort and offensive execution for the championship performance, pointing to the team's .365 hitting percentage as a reflection of both the attackers and setters working in sync.
"Total team effort. Our hitting was fantastic. Setters did a great job distributing the ball," Koskinaris said. "When you have a team hitting percentage at .365, that's obviously the hitters doing their part, but the setters finding the right hitter to put the ball away. Their reads were great."
With another Region 4 title secured, the Chaparrals now turn their attention to the NJCAA Division III Great Lakes District Championship. DuPage will travel to Elyria, Ohio, to face Lorain County Community College, with a victory earning the program its fifth consecutive trip to the NJCAA Division III Volleyball Championship.
"It's a high-quality team. They had a good run all year. We're very aware of that. We won't take them lightly," Koskinaris said. "We're going to go into that gym and give them the best game we got."
The Region 4 championship marked DuPage's 29th victory of the season, improving its record to 29-9. The Chaparrals will look to secure their place at the national tournament, scheduled for Nov. 12-14 at their home court, the PEC Arena on the College of DuPage campus.
