CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa. – The No. 2 seed Parkland College volleyball team closed its season out with a win on Saturday, November 19th, as the Cobras took down No. 1 seed Johnson County Community College in straight sets in the NJCAA DII Volleyball Championship Third Place Match. The Cobras (55-3) won a hard-fought first set against the Cavaliers (26-5) before pulling away comfortably in the second set and executing in crucial moments in the third. NJCAA All-American Kat Blase exploded for a team-high 16 kills and 21 total points, and freshman setter Landry Warfel recorded a match-high 18 assists in the win. Parkland College places third at the NJCAA DII National Championships, the Cobras' 13th season in program history finishing third or better.
 
No. 2 Parkland - 3, No. 1 Johnson County - 0, (25-22, 25-16, 25-22)
 
Kat Blase (16 kills, 3 service aces, 3 blocks)
Chloe Byrd (10 kills, 3 blocks)
Landry Warfel (18 assists)
Josie Hess (18 digs, 3 service aces)
Kayla Pacha (8 kills, 6 digs)
 
The two teams went back and forth at first, with the Cobras taking their first lead of the first set at 5-4, and the team managed to out-pace the Cavaliers the rest of the way as Parkland took set one, 25-22. The Cobras trailed early in the second set before a Kat Blase kill tied the set at 12 and sophomore Kenzie DeFosse followed that up with an ace to put Parkland in front. From there, the Cobras outscored the Cavaliers 12-4, and Parkland took a 2-0 lead with a 25-16 set win. In the third set, Johnson County again built up a small, 14-11 lead midway through, but Parkland called timeout and surged back to tie the set at 21. The Cobras executed in crucial moments throughout the match, and the team completed the sweep with a 25-22 third-set win. Parkland gets revenge on Johnson County, who defeated them in five sets back in August at the Opening Weekend Tournament in Rockford, IL.
 
The third-place finish marks Parkland College's fifth straight season finishing in the top three at the NJCAA National Championships. Parkland head coach Cliff Hastings has now placed third or better in 11 of his 14 seasons with the Cobras.