For the third time in five years, the St. Ambrose Fighting Bees finished as runner-up in the National Invitational Volleyball Tournament.
The Bees fell in three straight games to top-seeded tournament host Missouri Baptist in the championship match on Saturday, April 25, in St. Louis. Still, the run to the title match completed an eventful postseason for first-year head coach Catherine Wildner '13 and the Fighting Bees.
They finished third in the NAIA North Conference regular season, but won the postseason tournament with a tense 3-2 win over Grand View on April 11.
After dropping their first pool-play contest at the national tournament to Missouri Baptist, the Bees advanced to the semi-finals with a 3-1 win over Cardinal Stritch University and then again topped Grand View, this time 3-0, to advance to the title contest.
"The run to the national title game just showed how much heart these guys have," Wildner said. "They put in the work throughout the season to get there and they played their best volleyball this past weekend. They trusted each other, they were confident and they believed they could get there despite what other people thought. They came together as a team and earned their way to that championship game. I'm so proud of them."
The Bees finished with a 29-11 record under their first-year head coach. North Conference Setter of the Year Nick Lynch was the fourth player in SAU men's volleyball history to earn All-American status. He was one of four senior leaders on the team. That senior group also included middle hitter Jimmy Leyden, an all-national tourney team selection, and opposite hitter Jamie Schnittker and outside hitter Chris Scudder.
Junior opposite hitter Ryan Mahl also was named to the all-tourney team at nationals and earlier joined Lynch as a first-team all-conference regular season selection. Junior Adam Kessenich was the conference Libero of the Year and Leyden made second-team all-league.
A standout on the SAU women's volleyball team from 2010-2013, Wildner was joined on the bench by Bruce Billingsley, who recruited and coached her, and by Ryan Kristensen, who was a member of national runner-up Bees teams in 2011 and 2012.
"My first season was almost as good as it could get - it was unbelievable," said Wildner. "We wouldn't have gotten where we did without great assistant coaches and great senior leadership."
The Bees were praised throughout the national tournament for their sound defense, an aspect Wildner said at the start of the season she hoped would translate from the women's college game to the men.
"Once they bought into the defensive mentality and trusted the process of change, we made significant improvements and started winning games that no one thought we could win," she said. "I am so grateful to have had these 15 guys specifically on the team because of their character as individuals and as a team. They respected me, they worked hard, and they deserved to be in the championship game. I am excited for next year."
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