Sioux City, Iowa – Tonight the Columbia College women's volleyball team was back on the court for the last time this season as they took on the Park (Mo.) University Pirates in the 2018 NAIA Women's Volleyball National Championship Game presented by Delta Hotels. The Cougars were defeated by the Pirates in a five set thriller (25-19, 15-25, 25-17, 20-25, 14-16) and finished the year as the 2018 NAIA Women's Volleyball National Championship Runner-Up's. This is the sixth time in program history Columbia College has finished the season as the NAIA National Championship Runner-Up's with all six finishes being under head coach Melinda Wrye-Washington.

In the first set of the match, both sides came out and exchanged points to start the game. With the score tied at five, the Pirates were able to go on a 5-1 run to take a 10-6 lead in the set before Columbia was forced to call a timeout. The Cougars battled back following the timeout and were able to go on a 7-4 run to tie the set at 14 midway through the game. The Cougars continued to play well over next few rallies and were able to use an 8-3 run to take a 22-17 lead late in the set. The Pirates tried to get back into the game but Columbia's attack was too strong down the stretch as they took the first set by a final score of 25-19 to take a 1-0 lead in the match.

The Pirates came out in the second set and jumped out to a quick 6-1 lead before Columbia was forced to call a timeout. The Cougars had a tough time getting anything going as the set progressed and the Pirates were able to extend their lead to 14-2. Columbia College was finally able to get things going midway through the set and were able to go on an 8-4 run to cut the Pirates lead to 18-10. Despite being down, the Cougars battled down the stretch but were unable to get back into the game as Park took the second set by a final score of 25-15 to tie the match at one game apiece.

The Cougars picked it up in the third set and were able to score four of the first five points in the game to take an early 4-1 lead. Columbia College continued to play well as the set progressed and held a 12-8 lead midway through the game. The Pirates had a tough time stopping the Cougars attack and they were able to use a 9-5 run to extend their lead to 21-13 late in the set. The Pirates made a run at the end of the game and were able to cut the lead to 24-17 but Columbia College was able to score the final point of the game to solidify the third set by a final score 25-17 to take a 2-1 advantage in the match.

In the fourth game of the match, the Pirates started the set on a 4-1 run to jump out to an early lead. The Cougars responded by going on a 4-0 run to take a 5-4 lead in the game and the score remained close for the next few rallies. With the score tied at seven, Columbia College was able to break away from the Pirates and were able to use a 5-1 run to take a 12-8 lead midway through the game. Park battled back and responded with a 5-1 run of their own to tie the set at 13. The Pirates continued their run as the set progressed and held a 20-16 lead late in the game. Columbia made a late run at the Pirates but ultimately Park was able to pick up the final points of the game to take the fourth set by a final score of 25-20 to force a decisive fifth set.

The Pirates picked up where they left off in the fourth set to start the fifth and jumped out to a quick 5-1 lead before the Cougars were forced to call a timeout. Columbia came out of the timeout and were able to use a 4-3 run to cut the lead to 8-5 before the team's switched sides of the court. Following the switch of sides, the Cougars were able to use a 4-1 run to tie the game at nine points apiece. Both teams exchanged points over the next eight rallies and the score remained tied at 13 late in the game. The Pirates were able to score the next point to take a 14-13 lead but the Cougars responded by scoring the next point to keep their season alive. However, Park was able to score the final two points of the game to solidify the final set by a score of 16-14 to clinch their second NAIA Women's Volleyball National Championship in school history.

Columbia College played a great match all around but were led offensively by Maria Sandoval who finished with a team high 19 kills, Caroline Clifford who added 17 kills, Kiersten Anderson who finished with 11 kills, and Manuela Vargas who finished with an impressive 60 assists on the night. Defensively, the Cougars had five players finish with double-digit digs including Kiersten Anderson who finished with a team high 18 digs, Thais Andrade who finished with 17 digs, Maria Sandoval who finished with 15 digs, Manuela Vargas who had 12 digs, and Caroline Clifford who added 11 digs.

Following the conclusion of the game, the NAIA announced the National Championship All-Tournament Team. For their efforts in the tournament, Manuela Vargas, Barbara Sabino, and Kiersten Anderson were all recognized.

This marks the end of the 2018 Columbia College volleyball season as they finished as the 2018 NAIA Women's Volleyball National Championship Runner-Ups for the sixth time in program history. The Cougars ended the year with a 42-5 record on the season and were crowned the AMC Tournament Champions. They will return to the court next fall.