Rowan won its ninth New Jersey Athletic Conference Volleyball Championship in the Profs’ 3-0 sweep of Kean in the final on Saturday from Esby Gymnasium.
It is the first NJAC Title since 2022 and the first for head coach Casey Burford in her first season at the helm.
The Profs (28-3) clinch the NJAC’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament with selections announced on Monday at 1 p.m. at ncaa.com.
As a team, Rowan hit .337 on the evening, totaling 39 kills on 89 attempts. Hutton Cordrey led all attackers with a match-high 10 kills as the Profs had four players with seven or more kills: Jessica Smart (9), Abby Chadwick (7), and Abigail Bivona (7).
Rowan came out firing in the first two sets to claim a 2-0 lead before the Cougars gave it a last push in the third. Kean eroded the Prof lead away to tie it late in the frame, 19-19. Chadwick put down a pair of kills in that final stretch with the latter to put the home team on the verge of the win, 24-21 Two points later, a final serve from Kean was out of bounds to wrap things up and to kickstart the celebration.
Ava Best added five kills and four blocks (one solo) while setter Raven Albrecht finished with 29 assists and nine digs, both game highs.
Ashley Torok led Kean (16-12), the third seed in the tournament, with eight kills and four aces. Teammate Cayley Elena Morrison registered seven kills and four blocks. The Cougars hit .113 (26-17-80) on the night.
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