OXFORD, Ohio – Down 0-2 in its Mid-American Conference Tournament semifinal match against Ball State, the Miami University volleyball team pulled off a remarkable comeback to take a 3-2 (22-25, 25-27, 25-23, 26-24, 15-5) victory in an all-time classic at Millett Hall. The RedHawks advance to the MAC Championship match for the third straight season and improve to 22-7 overall. The Cardinals are 22-9.

Freshman outside hitter Sophie Riemersma had one of the greatest individual performances in the history of the Miami volleyball program. She had 29 kills, only one off the single-match record of 30 set by Wendy Tepe on Nov. 8, 1985. She had a .426 attack percentage on the night on 54 attempts. She put down six service aces, which is only two off the school record of eight (set three times). Riemersma made it a double-double with a career-high 17 digs and also contributed two blocks (one solo and one assisted). She scored an unbelievable 36.5 points for the RedHawks on Saturday.

Riemersma was not the only strong performer Saturday evening. Miami put down a season-high 80 kills, which surpassed its previous season high of 77, which was set the last time the 'Hawks took on the Cardinals back on Oct. 19. Freshman outside hitter Gaby Harper had another double-double of 17 kills and 18 digs. She had a .324 attack percentage and contributed four blocks (one solo and three assisted). She scored 19.5 points on the night. Despite being double-teamed the majority of the match, junior middle hitter Margaret Payne finished with 16 kills and three blocks, scoring 17.5 points for the RedHawks. The seniors also played a big part, as middle hitter Courtney Simons had seven kills and six blocks (one solo and five assisted), while right side hitter Stela Kukoc finished with seven kills and six assists).

Set one was a struggle early on for the RedHawks. After kills from Payne and Riemersma, along with a service ace by sophomore libero Abigail Huser helped tie the score at three, a 10-2 run by Ball State put it on top, 13-5. Harper had a pair of kills off assists from freshman setter Louise Comerford as part of an 8-2 answer that pulled Miami within two at 13-15. Trailing 16-19, a kill from Simons, a block by Kukoc and Simons and a service ace from Riemersma got the 'Hawks even at 19. Tied at 20, the Cardinals scored four in a row to create set point. Miami fought it off twice with kills from junior outside hitter Taylor Daignault and Payne, but BSU scored next to take a 25-22 win.

Miami fell behind 3-6 to begin set two. Another kills and a service ace by Riemersma, along with kills from Harper and Simons helped it gain an 8-7 lead. After a kill from Payne off an assist from sophomore setter Morgan Seaman made it 11-9 in favor of the RedHawks, a 6-2 run by Ball State gave it a 15-13 advantage. Miami would continue to fight the score to a tie, but the Cardinals would answer with a few points of their own to go back in front. Trailing 20-22, two kills from Riemersma and one from Payne finally got the RedHawks ahead at 23-22. After Ball State scored next, a kill from Kukoc gave Miami set point. Ball State fought that off twice, eventually tying the score at 25. Two attack errors by the Red and White then gave the Cardinals a 27-25 victory and a 2-0 lead in the match.

With its back against the wall, Miami came out swinging in set three. Kills by Harper, Kukoc, Riemersma and Payne, along with another service ace by Riemersma were part of an 8-4 start. Riemersma had three more kills as the RedHawks increased the advantage to 15-9. Trailing 12-18, Ball State began a comeback, going on an 8-1 run to take a 20-19 lead. After a kill from Payne tied the score, the Cardinals recorded a block to make it 21-20. On the brink of falling in a sweep, Payne recorded back-to-back kills, while a BSU attack error gave the RedHawks a 23-21 lead. The teams then traded side outs the rest of the way, and a kill from Riemersma off a Comerford assist got Miami on the board with a 25-23 victory.

A service ace by Comerford, along with kills from Harper, Payne, Riemersma and junior right side hitter Haley Stewart were part of another great start for Miami as it built a 7-3 lead in set four. The Cardinals answered with a 7-4 run to pull within one at 10-11., but the Red and White would not let them tie the score. Leading 18-17, kill from Simons, Harper and Payne gave the RedHawks a 21-17 advantage. Ball State pulled within one at 22-23, before a kill from Harper made it set point. The Cardinals scored two in a row to finally tie the score at 24. Undeterred, Miami forced a Ball State attack error, then Harper put down a kill to give the 'Hawks a 26-24 victory and send the match into a fifth set.

Ball State scored the first two points on set five. A kill and a block by Riemersma quickly tied the score, but the Cardinals answered back with a kill to take a 3-2 lead. It was at that point that the RedHawk offense exploded. Riemersma had three kills, and two service aces, while Comerford had a kill and a service ace as part of an 8-1 run that forced BSU to use both of its timeouts. Out of the break the momentum continued to swing Miami's way, as Harper and Simons teamed up for two blocks, while Riemersma had a kill and a service ace to up the run to 12-1 and make it 14-4. The Cardinals scored next, but it just delayed the inevitable as Harper put down a final kill to give the RedHawks a 15-5 victory and a 3-2 win in the match.

Miami had a .273 attack percentage for the contest, while holding Ball State to a .222 attack percentage. Both teams recorded 12 blocks in the match. The RedHawks had a season-high 73 assists, with Seaman recording 36 and Comerford getting a career-high 30. Miami out dug the Cardinals, 79-61 for the match. Joining Harper and Riemersma with double digit digs were junior libero Lindsay Dauch with 13 and Huser with 12.

The RedHawks now advance to the MAC Championship match for the fourth time in the past five seasons. Miami will face fifth-seed Eastern Michigan on Sunday at 4:30 p.m. inside Millett Hall. The Eagles took down top seed Bowling Green, 3-1, in the first semifinal match on Saturday. The MAC Championship will air live on ESPN+.