After being down two sets to zero, the St. Lawrence volleyball team came back to upset top-seeded RIT in five sets in the Liberty League Semifinals on Friday afternoon in Rochester, N.Y.

RIT claimed the one seed after going undefeated in league play, and defeated St. Lawrence in straight sets in September. The Saints will play in their first Liberty League Championship match since the league switched to the current format in 2011.

The Tigers took the first two sets by scores of 25-20 and 25-17, but in the third set the Saints jumped out to a 6-1 lead. The Tigers were not able to get their offense going and never scored more than two straight points, and St. Lawrence took the third set 25-14.

RIT looked to put the match to bed in the fourth, leading 19-15, but an eight-point run by the Saints, which included four kills by senior Annika Kreppein, put the Saints back on top 23-19. Each team traded a pair of attack errors on the next four points, and St. Lawrence forced a fifth set, winning 25-21.

A pair of kills by senior Natalie Piper gave the Saints their first lead in the fifth set, 4-3. After a six side outs, junior setter Allie Posnick had her third service ace of the night to extend the lead 8-6. The ace was followed by four more side outs, neither team letting the other gain momentum, but a kill by Courtney Benson was followed by a Piper kill and an error by RIT for Saints 12-8 lead. The Tigers cobbled together two consecutive points to bring the score back to two, but another Piper kill stopped their traction. After another RIT side out, a Piper kill set up match point, and a Kreppein kill gave the set to St. Lawrence 15-11.

"What an unbelievable match," said head coach Shelly Roiger. "I cannot say enough about the fight and 'refuse to lose' mentality that this team showed after being down 0-2. To come back in five and win in that manner and on that stage in what is the biggest match of our players' career is just unreal. We've hardly been in any five set matches all season and lost a heartbreaker last Saturday. Six days later we hit .400 in set five and scratch and claw our way to a victory over a very talented RIT team. I am so proud and happy for our team. They made St. Lawrence volleyball history tonight by punching their ticket into our first Liberty League championship ever and tomorrow we hope to make history again. We are so fortunate to have this opportunity to represent St. Lawrence University in the championship and I know that the team realizes that we didn't get on a bus to go 1-1 this weekend."

Piper led the Saints with 21 kills and 19 digs, and Kreppein had 15 kills and 16 digs. Posnick had 38 assists to go along with her three service aces. Libero Reagan Collier-Hogan recorded 18 digs. Madison Amico and Kreppein each added two serves to the Saints' winning campaign.

RIT was led by Katie Hobler's 22 kills and Taylor Higgins' 19. Sydney Neff had a match-high 51 assists.

This was the first five set match the Saints have won this season, and the first time St. Lawrence has defeated RIT since 2017.

The Saints improve to 17-10 on the season, and RIT fell to 24-4 with the loss. The Saints will play Clarkson, who defeated Ithaca in the other semifinal matchup, in the Championship match at 2 p.m. on Saturday, November 6 in Rochester, N.Y.