It was a historic close to the 2021 regular season for the UCF Knights Volleyball team.

On Friday, UCF swept South Florida for its fifth victory in a row, branding head coach Todd Dagenais his 250th career win.

Then, on Saturday, the Knights ran it back again with a sweep of the Bulls, this time to clinch The American’s regular season championship for the first time since 2018, and finish the regular season at 14-1 and a perfect 8-0 in the conference. It’s the second time in the last three seasons UCF has gone undefeated in conference play.

The Knights are on a historic run right now. They have won:

• 44 of 51 sets played this season overall.
• 24 of 25 sets in conference play.
• 75 of its last 90 matches overall since the 2017 season.
• An incredible 49 of their last 51 matches against teams from The American.

McKenzie Chambers and Tali Marmen discussed the match afterwards, along with head coach Todd Dagenais:

It’s the third conference regular season title for the Knights under Dagenais.

We’re On To Cincinnati

Next up for the Knights is a trip to Cincinnati for The American Volleyball Championship next Friday and Saturday.

This year, the tournament field was reduced to four teams, with the top team in each division facing the second-best team in the opposite division. There were no crossover matches in conference play.

UCF will face the Tulane Green Wave, whom the Knights beat twice in Orlando earlier this season in what were, for the record, non-conference matches. The Wave has won five of its last six heading into the tournament.

In a shocking development, the Temple Owls knocked the host Cincinnati Bearcats out of the #2 slot in the East by virtue of beating Cincinnati twice in Philadelphia this weekend, including a five-setter on Saturday afternoon. As a result, the Owls face Houston in the first round, opposite UCF and Tulane.

The Cougars won the west with a 9-1 record in The American (13-5 overall), but their loss to Wichita State Friday night opened the door for UCF to take the regular season crown. The Cougars have lost three of their last four.

UCF’s semifinal with Tulane is Friday at 2 p.m., followed by Temple and Houston. The Championship match