Gophers storm back to beat Baylor in volleyball Sweet 16, meet Badgers for Final Four berth

MADISON, WIS. — During an NCAA tournament volleyball match against Baylor that felt like a full-frontal assault on cognition, Gophers senior Airi Miyabe had a premonition.

"One thing came through my mind," Miyabe said. "We're just not done yet. We're not. We're not ending this here."

It took every ounce of fight that Miyabe and her teammates had to make that come true.

Minnesota defeated No. 5 overall seed Baylor in five grueling, back-and-forth sets Thursday, 26-28, 25-22, 20-25, 25-23, 15-10, to advance to the NCAA Madison Regional final. The Gophers will face rival and Big Ten champion Wisconsin on Saturday after the Badgers swept UCLA 25-16, 25-18, 25-17 in the other semifinal.

But looking forward can wait.

The numbers for Minnesota and Baylor on Thursday reflected the impenetrability of the opponents. The Gophers' hitting percentage was .166, and the Bears hit .175, the second-lowest mark of the season for each.

Both teams dipped into internal reservoirs, time and time again, to push back against competitive conclusion.

In a tournament in which teams survive and advance, someone simply had to go home.

In the end, for Minnesota (22-8), it was a win that came down to collective willpower.

"We talked a lot about how we know the outcome we want at the end, but we have to work point to point throughout these sets to get what we want," Gophers senior Stephanie Samedy said. "I think having an emphasis on 'this is what we have to do in this play to make it happen' was important tonight."

Trailing two sets to one and 16-13 in the fourth set, Minnesota rallied with six straight points to turn the tide and force a fifth and deciding set.

And when the Gophers fell behind 6-2 in the fifth? They went on a dominant 13-4 run to cap the comeback.

"At any given moment, everybody has the opportunity to contribute," Gophers coach Hugh McCutcheon said. "And maybe most importantly everybody has a responsibility to contribute, in whatever they can in that particular play.

"This group, as I have said before, low ego, high output. But it's not about any one of us, it's about all of us, and that surely seemed to be represented tonight."

It was a match that represented the best that volleyball has to offer:

Ferocious attacks from Gophers hitters Samedy, Jenna Wenaas and Miyabe and their gravity-defying counterparts, Baylor attackers Yossiana Pressley, Avery Skinner and Lauren Harrison.

Setters Melani Shaffmaster for Minnesota and Hannah Sedwick for Baylor (22-6) alternating parabolic nightmares as they fed those hitters.

Gophers libero CC McGraw, returning from an illness, anchored in the middle, contorting her body to return those bombs from Pressley. And Bears libero Shanel Bramschreiber returning the favor against Samedy.

Unending effort on defense from Gophers middle blockers Ellie Husemann and Katie Myers and Bears blocker Kara McGhee.

"It's just a dream to be out on the court at that level," Sedwick said. "Out on the court in general, but especially at that level. ... We have a lot of gratitude for the opportunity."

For the Gophers, this season will continue and the stakes will rise. But moments from Thursday's match will remain vivid.

Early in the third set, with Baylor leading 3-1, Sedwick went back to serve for the Bears. The resulting rally encompassed 37 touches by the teams, including Wenaas leaping, her hand stretched and impossibly tapping a ball back into play. The final lunge came from Miyabe, who usually posts on the left side of the net. She found herself about 50 feet from home, lunging two rows into the bleachers to try to save the point.

"After the game, we came back to our locker room. First thing, we just said, 'It was so fun,' " she said. "I know it was tough, and it's not an easy game. But just compete and bring whatever we can do to win the game. It was so much fun."

As Miyabe climbed out of the stands and took her position back on the court after that incredible rally, the crowd rose to its feet.

A match against Wisconsin is coming. A shot at the Final Four. But you could be forgiven, in the moment, if you wished this match would never end.