BALTIMORE, MD - The University of La Verne Leopards are officially NCAA Regional Champions, and they earned this one the hard way. In a five-set battle against No. 6 Johns Hopkins on their home court, the No. 5 Leopards clawed back from an 0-2 hole and completed a dramatic reverse sweep, winning 3-2 (17-25, 21-25, 25-21, 27-25, 15-13) to advance to the Elite Eight in Bloomington, Illinois.

The opening two sets were rough. Hopkins fed off their home crowd, pushed the pace, and kept La Verne from finding any rhythm. Down 0-2, the Leopards looked stunned — but never shaken. Head Coach Jeff Hendershot delivered timely timeouts throughout the match, pulling his team in, settling their nerves, and re-centering the group every time momentum threatened to slip further away. Each timeout felt perfectly chosen: sometimes to calm everyone down, sometimes to fire them back up — and every single one hit exactly how it needed to.

And once La Verne steadied themselves, the match flipped.

The comeback started behind an absolutely monstrous performance from Mya Ray, who put together one of the greatest postseason showings in program history. Ray finished with 37 kills, 40 points, 21 digs, and a .355 hitting percentage; breaking two personal records in the same night: most kills in a single match and most total points in a match. Her dominance carried the Leopards through every long rally, every extended point, every moment they needed someone to rise above the chaos. Her performance also pushes her to a staggering 550 kills this season, continuing what has already been a legendary year.

But this was far from a one-woman comeback.

Lauren Gott delivered one of the grittiest matches of her career, putting down 13 kills with 16 digs while repeatedly coming through in the exact moments La Verne needed someone to steady the ship. And in poetic fashion, it was Gott who buried the final swing of the fifth set, sealing the regional title and sending La Verne into a dogpile at center court. She looked every bit like the clutch, composed playmaker she's been all postseason.

La Verne's net defense also rose to the challenge again, and their ball control was just as critical. Zacky Coaston added five kills and four block assists, while Abigail Montana chipped in three kills and four blocks of her own. In the backcourt, Vanessa Marquez was a steadying force all night with 20 digs, repeatedly keeping extended rallies alive and giving La Verne second and third chances in crucial moments. Libero Keilani Mumolo added another 15 digs, and setter America Reynaga ran the offense with 25 assists while adding a key service ace and calming presence.

Once the Leopards forced a fifth set, the energy in the gym shifted. Hopkins fought to keep control, but La Verne had already taken the reins. The teams traded points deep into the final frame, but every time the moment got tight, La Verne found an answer. Ray hammered kills off the block, Gott came up huge in transition, and Hendershot's timeouts kept the group centered in the storm. Up 14-13 in the fifth, the ball found Gott, and she crushed the final kill to complete the reverse sweep and crown the Leopards regional champions.

After five sets of heart-stopping, season-defining volleyball, La Verne walked away with one of the program's most memorable postseason wins and a ticket to the NCAA Championships.

Ray, Mumolo, and Gott earned Baltimore Regional All-Tournament honors. Ray was named the Tournament Most Outstanding Player, her second-straight NCAA Tournament Regional Most Outstanding Player honor after earning the distinction at last season's Massachusetts Regional.

The Leopards now advance to Bloomington, Illinois, where they will compete in the Elite Eight beginning December 3. This marks the second consecutive year that La Verne has been crowned NCAA Regional Champions and the second straight season they have earned a spot in the Elite Eight. With the resilience they showed tonight, traveling across the country to face an opponent on its home court and overcoming every shift in momentum, they look more than ready for the national stage.