After breezing through its first match at the NCAA Division II West Regional Championships, the Western Washington volleyball team took the long route to the title.
The Vikings dropped the first two sets to Cal State San Bernardino on Sunday afternoon, then roared back to seize the championship in five sets at the Alaska Airlines Center on UAA's campus.
Next stop: The Elite 8 in Tampa, Florida, this week.
Western Washington of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference beat Cal State San Bernardino 21-25, 14-25, 25-22, 25-23, 16-14.
The Vikings (26-5), ranked No. 16 nationally, needed five sets Saturday to beat UC San Diego after disposing of Point Loma in straight sets in their opening regional match Friday.
The Coyotes (28-6) advanced to the final by beating top-seeded UAA, the GNAC champion, in the semis Saturday night, storming back after being dropped in the first two sets. They also needed five sets to be Central Washington of the GNAC in the quarterfinals of the eight-team tournament hosted by UAA.
Rachel Roeder paced the Vikings with 22 kills and six block assists. Abby Phelps furnished 17 kills and 23 digs, Kayleigh Harper racked eight kills and nine block assists, and Jollee Buckner added eight kills and 20 digs.
Cal State San Bernardino's Alexandra Torline continued to be a force, cranking 29 kills and generating 20 digs. Torline in three regional matches racked 83 kills. Malika O'Brien added 17 kills for the Coyotes, ranked No. 22 in the nation, and Lauren Nicholson had 15.