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CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – For the first time in more than a decade, the College of Saint Benedict volleyball team is one of eight teams in Division III still competing in the final week of the season.
 
After winning the St. Paul Regional championship Saturday night, Saint Benedict earned a spot in the Elite 8 for the first time since 2008. CSB – which enters the final weekend of play for 2019 with a 26-5 overall record – earned the No. 7 seed after the final eight teams were re-seeded, and takes on second-seeded and undefeated Johns Hopkins Thursday in the NCAA Division III Quarterfinals. Game time is 5:30 p.m. at the U.S. Cellular Center in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
 
After falling in the MIAC semifinals to St. Olaf, the Bennies rebounded and won three straight matches at the region tournament – including a pair of five-set thrillers against Northwestern and UW-Stevens Point to advance to the final site. Saint Benedict is undefeated in neutral-court games this season (11-0), and looks to keep that streak going at the U.S. Cellular Center.
 
The Blue Jays enter Thursday's quarterfinal match on a 32-game winning streak as they have not lost since the 2018 NCAA Region Tournament semifinals. Johns Hopkins ran through its conference play, and swept all three opponents in the region tournament – which it hosted. The Blue Jays have swept 11 straight opponents dating back to a 3-1 win against Stevenson on Oct. 17.
 
Junior outside Simone Bliss and junior setter Natalie Aston both earned First Team All-American honors Tuesday after outstanding seasons for the Blue Jays. Aston is currently ninth in Division III with 10.79 assists per set and has 1,036 total assists to her name. She is also 11^th in the nation with 71 service aces and is third on the team with 277 digs. Bliss led Johns Hopkins with 383 kills this season and hit .286 from the outside. She is also second on the team with 287 digs and had 11 double-doubles.
 
As a team, the Blue Jays lead the nation with a .313 hitting percentage. They are also second in Division III with an opponent hitting percentage of just .085 and fourth in the nation with 13.99 kills per set. JHU hit .300 or better in 20 of its 32 games this season, and had 50 or more kills eight times. The Blue Jays have 177.5 total team blocks while opponents have just 128.5
 
Saint Benedict isn't far behind Johns Hopkins as the Bennies are 10^th in the nation with a team hitting percentage of .249. CSB hit .300 or better 10 times while holding opponents to a .153 percentage. Saint Benedict is fourth in Division III as a team with 2.39 blocks per set, and seventh with 272 total blocks. CSB has had double-digit team blocks 12 times, including 13 in each of the three region tournament matches.
 
Johns Hopkins has three athletes with 300 or more kills, led by Bliss with 383. Five athletes have 100 or more kills for the Blue Jays. Hunter Weiss has a career-best 435 kills so far this season and Madison Weiss has 387, and four other athletes have at least 100 kills for CSB. Both Hunter and Madison earned First Team All-American honors Tuesday – the first time since 1990 CSB has had a pair of first-team honorees. Junior setter Katie Koch is seventh in the nation with 10.89 assists per set and 18^th with 1,256 assists.
 
The winner of Thursday's quarterfinal match meets up with the winner of Thursday's Calvin/Trinity match at 7:30 p.m. Friday in the national semifinals. The 2019 NCAA Division III National Championship match is set for 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 23. Tickets for the national championship matches are $10 per game for adults or $20 for an all-session pass, which allows fans in to all three days.