Salt Lake Clinches Playoff Seat with Home Finale Win Over Madison

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah — April 4, 2026 — LOVB Salt Lake closed out its regular season schedule in dramatic fashion Saturday night, defeating LOVB Madison in four sets (20-25, 25-23, 25-18, 25-20) at Bruin Arena to clinch a berth in the 2026 LOVB Playoffs in Louisville.

"This group has been through it, and they show up today and just battle," said head coach Tama Miyashiro. "This was our main goal: to make the playoffs so we could get in a position to win the championship. Our first goal is done."

With the win, Salt Lake finishes the regular season at 10-10 and tied for third place in the league standings. They’ll be the No. 4 seed during the postseason after losing the head-to-head tiebreaker of set win percentage to LOVB Austin.

Salt Lake dropped the opening set before rallying to win three straight, fueled by a loud Fan Appreciation Night crowd that packed Bruin Arena for the team's final home match of the season.

Player of the Match Serena Gray led Salt Lake with 16 points on 12 kills and a .647 hitting percentage, adding three blocks and an ace. Heidy Casanova matched her with 16 points on 16 kills, Alexa Gray contributed 15 points –13 kills – and Claire Hoffman added 14 points and 12 digs. Setter Jordyn Poulter paced the offense with 52 assists and a .311 attack efficiency, and libero Manami Kojima anchored the back row with 23 digs. 

A prime candidate for LOVB’s Libero of the Year, Kojima ended the regular season with 256 digs and is the only LOVB athlete to reach 250 digs in a season.

Madison was led by middle blocker Anna Hall, who scored 14 points. Temi Thomas-Ailara and Gong Xiangyu each added 13.

LOVB Salt Lake opens playoff action Friday, April 10 at 4:30 p.m. Mountain in Louisville, Kentucky. The two-set series against top-seeded LOVB Houston will conclude Sunday, April 12 at 12 Noon Mountain. Should the series be tied 1-1, a golden set to 15 points will immediately follow the second match.