Dillard repeats as HBCUAC Postseason Champions in Five-Set Thriller
BOSSIER CITY, LA. - In a championship match between the top two teams of the Historically Black Colleges and Universities Athletic Conference (HBCUAC), Dillard University outside hitter Makaela Swoopes got a kill to seal a repeat for the Lady Bleu Devils in a five-set classic over East No. 1 seed Fisk University (21-25, 25-22, 25-23, 24-26, 15-12) on Wednesday in the 2025 HBCUAC Volleyball championship match hosted by the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission.
The Lady Bleu Devils (18-8, 11-1 HBCUAC) are the first team to repeat as postseason conference champions since former Xavier University of Louisiana won 10 straight titles from 2011-2020. Swoopes led the team with 14 kills and earned 2025 HBCUAC Volleyball Championship Most Valuable Player. Gabrielle Washington followed with 12 kills and four blocks, with three solo. She earned All-Tournament along with her teammate Trenity Pender who recorded 14 digs.
Fisk (29-7, 10-0 HBCUAC) went on a five-point run in the first set. It took advantage of three errors by Dillard. Delaney Farver recorded a kill and block to give the Lady Bulldogs a 16-9 lead, prompting a timeout. Kills by Ajanae Chatham, Washington, Swoopes and Nevah Bax trimmed the margin to two, causing Fisk head coach Jessica Enderle to use a timeout. Two blocks tied the set at 20. A kill by Farver gave the lead back to the Lady Bulldogs. Shelby Chamblin recorded a block and assisted on one with Farver to put Fisk up by four. An attack error gave the first set to Fisk.
The Lady Bulldogs led 13-11 in the second set but made five errors, which allowed Dillard to take a four-point lead. Two more attack errors and a kill by Swoopes pushed the margin to seven. Kills by Laila Esters, Chenille McClellan and Reagan Jones and a service ace by Nebthet Re cut the margin to one. A service error helped Dillard keep the lead. A kill by Nya St. Cyr and an attack error evened the match.
With the third set tied at 20, a service error and a kill by Swoopes put Dillard ahead by two. Fisk called a timeout but could not retake momentum despite two kills by McClellan. Kills by Sarai Rogers, Cadence Thomas and St. Cyr moved Dillard one set away from securing victory.
Kills by Chamblin and Esters and a block by La'Niyah Lumpkin gave Fisk an early four-point lead. Faced with set point, Dillard got kills from Swoopes and Rogers, who also teamed up with Thomas for a block to tie the set at 24. Two kills by Esters sent the match to a decisive fifth set.
Fisk led early in the fifth set on a kill by Esters and a service ace by Nialah Gupton. The Lady Bleu Devils built a 10-8 lead on a kill by St. Cyr and an ace by Nanyelis Sosa-Moreno. The Lady Bulldogs tied the set at 11 with kills by Chamblin and Barnett. A kill by Sosa-Moreno and a block by Washington put Dillard ahead by two and set up Swoopes' match-ending kill.
Sosa-Moreno finished with a double-double, notching 27 assists and 12 digs. Chatham also double-dipped with 15 assists and 10 digs. Jasmyne Mumphrey recorded a team-high 17 digs. Thomas contributed nine kills and four total blocks.
'Chamblin, the 2025 HBCUAC Player of the Year, led all attackers with 18 kills. Twenty digs gave her a double-double. McClellan followed with 13 kills and Esters reached double digits with 10. Re recorded 27 assists and three service aces. Barnett followed with 22 assists and eight digs. Gupton led all players with 22 digs. Farver recorded five blocks with three solo.
Both teams earned automatic bids to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Volleyball National Championship Opening Round. It is Dillard's second consecutive appearance and third overall in program history. Fisk advances to the NAIA National Championship for the first time in program history.
2025 HBCUAC All-Tournament Team
MVP Makaela Swoopes, Dillard
Trenity Pender, Dillard
Gabrielle Washington, Dillard
Laila Esters, Fisk
Nialah Gupton, Fisk
Mackenzie Turner, Huston-Tillotson
Christlove Lature, Philander Smith
About the HBCU Athletic Conference
The HBCU Athletic Conference (HBCUAC) is the only HBCU conference in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). The HBCUAC membership includes Dillard University (LA), Fisk University (TN), Huston-Tillotson University (TX), Oakwood University (AL), Paul Quinn College (TX), Philander Smith University (AR), Rust College (MS), Southern University at New Orleans (LA), Stillman College (AL), Talladega College (AL), Tougaloo College (MS), University of the Virgin Islands (St. Thomas), Voorhees University (SC), Wilberforce University (OH), and Wiley University (TX). HBCUAC sponsors championships in men's and women's basketball, men's and women's cross country, men's and women's soccer, men's and women's track and field, women's volleyball, softball, and baseball. In 2022, the HBCUAC secured the largest media rights deal in conference and NAIA history, signing a multimillion-dollar deal with Urban Edge Network. On July 1, 2024, the conference rebranded from the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference (GCAC) to the HBCU Athletic Conference, marking a new era for the conference that embodies the makeup of its membership. For more information, visit hbcuac.org.