ST. PAUL, Minn. -- When the 2011 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) volleyball regular season came to an end on Saturday afternoon, Concordia and St. Thomas were tied atop the final standings as conference co-champions. However, Saturday they'll get to settle it on the court with another title on the line as both advance to the championship match of the 2011 MIAC Volleyball Playoffs with identical 3-0 wins in Thursday's semifinal round.

Concordia - the top seed by virtue of its head-to-head win over St. Thomas - made quick work of fourth-seeded Saint Benedict Thursday in Moorhead with commanding 25-13 and 25-12 wins in the first two sets, and a 25-22 victory to complete the sweep. The second-seeded Tommies also scored a sweep of No. 3 Bethel by winning the biggest points of the match in the tight first and third sets en route to a 25-22, 25-17 and 28-26 victory.

The Cobbers' two big stars were in top form Thursday, with Jenna Green racking up 15 kills and 14 digs, and Katie Vohnoutka added 11 kills, five digs and three total blocks. Amy Sykora had 33 set assists and six digs for Concordia, Rachel Wiinanen matched Green's team-high 14 digs and Alison Bruggeman had three service aces, five digs and two blocks. Lexi Alm led a balanced Blazers' attack in the loss. She finished with eight kills and eight digs, while Alexa Rinde and Chelsie Sobieck added seven kills apiece. Chelsea Rachel had a match-high 15 digs and Taya Kockelman and Kathryn Gaydos had 15 and 12 assists, respectively. Saint Benedict ends its postseason with an 18-12 record, while the Cobbers improved to 24-3 in 2011.

The Tommies and Royals played almost dead even in sets one and three, but the difference was St. Thomas' performance in the final points of those sets, and a solid second-set win. Kelly Foley led three UST players with double-digit kills with 14. Nicole Potts added 10 kills, 11 digs and three aces and Bri Peters had 10 kills and three blocks. Ashley Maher handed out 40 assists and added 14 digs for the Tommies, while Kaitlain Wachter had 16 digs in the win. Amy Werner had 12 kills to lead Bethel, and Nicole Wriedt added 11 kills in the loss. Kate Smith had 24 assists, Valerie Smith had a match-high 22 digs and Haley Toter added 12 digs for the Royals. Bethel's postseason ends with a 22-9 overall record, while St. Thomas improved to 29-3.

Now, the two co-champs will meet Saturday with the title on the line and two impressive winning streaks at stake. St. Thomas' last loss was a 3-0 defeat at the hands of the Cobbers back on Sept. 28 - the Tommies have won 16 straight since. Meanwhile, Concordia is riding a 12-match winning streak, and only once in that run have the Cobbers opponents managed to win a set.

Saturday's title match begins at 7 p.m. in Moorhead, with live video and stats available online. The winner of Saturday's match will receive the MIAC's automatic bid to the 2011 NCAA Division III Volleyball Playoffs. Below are complete results, scores, schedules and links regarding the 2011 MIAC Volleyball Playoffs, including a link to the tournament’s home page.

2011 MIAC Volleyball Playoffs
Quarterfinals: Tuesday, Nov. 1
No. 3 Bethel 3, No. 6 Augsburg 1 | Box Score | Recap |
No. 4 Saint Benedict 3, No. 5 Gustavus 1 | Box Score | Recap |

Semifinals: Thursday, Nov. 3
No. 4 Saint Benedict 0, No. 1 Concordia 3 | Box Score |
No. 3 Bethel 0, No. 2 St. Thomas 3 | Box Score |

Championship: Saturday, Nov. 5
No. 2 St. Thomas at No. 1 Concordia – 7 p.m. – Moorhead, Minn. | Live video/stats |

Courtesy of MIAC