Juniata and Washington-St. Louis met in a familiar setting November 18: the finals of the Division III Women’s Volleyball Championship.

Two years ago, Juniata captured its first national title in the sport by downing the then-defending champion Bears. This year, the Eagles added another chapter to their championship history by rallying to a 30-27, 20-30, 22-30, 30-27, 15-10 victory over the Bears in Salem, Virginia.

Stephanie Kines, the American Volleyball Coaches Association Division III player of the year, led Juniata (41-1) with 26 kills and a .412 hitting percentage. Amber Thomas, the tournament’s most outstanding player, contributed 25 kills and 14 digs for the Eagles.

After the thrilling championship match, both sides said there wasn’t much separating the two teams.

"We’re very fortunate to have won a great match against a wonderful team," said Juniata coach Larry Bock, whose club was the 2005 national runner-up.

Bears coach Rich Luenemann added: "I’ve been around volleyball for a long time, and this is the best match I’ve ever been a part of. One thing we didn’t do was win the match. It’s disappointing, but we’ll take the memories of this season with us."

The final was a see-saw affair with large momentum shifts. After Juniata won the first game, 30-27 — capped by a 7-2 spurt — Washington took control by winning the next two games by scores of 30-20 and 30-22.

Washington (38-2) competed at a high level throughout the match, hitting .312 as a team. The Bears also outblocked the Eagles, 18-4, over the five games.

Emilie Walk, who recorded her 1,000th career kill during the match, registered four kills and two blocks in the third game for the Bears.

"For a while there, it was like going to the dentist," Bock said after his team dropped two consecutive games. "We just couldn’t score any serving points."

Washington held a 24-20 lead in the fourth game and was six points from victory before Juniata put together a 10-3 run to force the deciding game.

Kines and Rachael Schatz had two kills apiece to stave off defeat.

Juniata began the fifth game by taking an 8-6 lead. Thomas and Erin Albert combined for a block on the first point of the game, and Kines added a solo block to help build the Eagles’ advantage.

"We just picked up our momentum again and took it to them," Thomas said. "We knew what we had to do and then pulled it out in that fifth game."

Juniata took a 13-8 lead thanks to a pair of kills from Kines and Schatz, and an ace by Beth Kozak.

Washington was able to score twice before another solo block by Kines and a kill by Thomas on match point allowed the Eagles to celebrate.

Kines and Kozak joined Thomas on the all-tournament team. Also included were Walk, who had 17 kills and five solo blocks in the final, and Whitney Smith of the Bears.

Wis.-Whitewater def. Cal Lutheran, 32-30, 30-21, 30-22; Washington-St. Louis def. Stevens Inst., 30-22, 30-18, 30-19; Wittenberg def. Trinity (Tex.), 30-28, 30-18, 30-19; Juniata def. Coast Guard, 30-16, 30-14, 30-23.

Juniata def. Wittenberg, 30-28, 30-24, 30-22; Washington-St. Louis def. Wis.-Whitewater, 30-21, 30-18, 30-23.

Juniata 30 20 22 30 15

Washington-St. Louis 27 30 30 27 10

Stephanie Kines 26 5 51 .412 0 0 2 2

Amber Thomas 25 9 68 .235 1 0 14 1

Paige Johnston 7 6 26 .038 1 0 7 1

Beth Kozak 2 3 8 -.125 75 2 13 0

Erin Albert 9 5 26 .154 0 0 3 2

Rachael Schatz 21 9 46 .261 0 0 12 0

Jessica Ritchey 0 0 0 .000 3 1 3 0

Molly Sollenberger 0 0 0 .000 0 0 9 0

Megan Sollenberger 0 0 0 .000 2 0 21 0

Megan Lamens 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0

Kristi Fitzsimmons 0 1 1 -1.000 0 0 0 0

Totals 90 38 226 .230 82 3 84 4

Audra Janak 5 1 13 .308 36 0 5 1

Haleigh Spencer 10 4 31 .194 3 1 15 3

Whitney Smith 15 2 32 .406 0 0 7 8

Alli Alberts 1 0 6 .167 1 0 15 0

Nikki Morrison 10 2 26 .308 0 0 2 2

Emilie Walk 17 4 36 .361 0 0 0 11

Ali Crouch 6 2 21 .190 0 0 4 2

Jennee Montijo 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0

Amy Bommarito 0 0 3 .000 1 0 23 0

Ellen Bruegge 9 0 18 .500 3 0 1 3

Vicki Blood 0 0 0 .000 23 0 4 0

Totals 73 15 186 ,312 67 1 76 18