Scottsdale Community College Volleyball team won the NJCAA Division II National Championship last Saturday in Charleston, West Virginia.

The last four wins of their 26-game win streak that began back on Sept. 3, took place at the National Tournament last week, as they swept Oakland Community College and McHenry, before taking out Coffeyville and Parkland 3-2 to bring home the hardware.

It’s a remarkable feat given the fact that last years’ team won only five games the entire season and this years’ team was composed entirely of freshman, with the exception of star middle blocker Alexis Diaz-Infante.

“Last year was a finish that we don’t typically have and it was one of those years that you have to look at what’s working and what’s not working and so building something different this year was gonna require lots of new people,” head coach Regina Mannix said.

Mannix went on to say that the coaching staff knew Diaz-Infante would be the key to their success this season and built around her.

Mannix told Northeast Valley News that she and her staff knew right away that this team had the potential to go deep into the postseason.

“Actually, it started before the season, when we were recruiting and we started putting this roster together.  Some great pieces were coming our way.  We realized then that this team had the potential,” Mannix said.

Another factor in the team’s success this season was avoiding injuries.

“It’s a big piece of any team’s success over the course of the season,” Mannix said.  “Lucky for me, our Strength and Conditioning Coach Julia Larish is excellent…we work really well together.  This year it worked out that we made all the right choices and the judgement calls worked into our favor and everyone was healthy and ready to go at the end of the season.”

Perhaps even more important than the accolades that go with winning a National Championship, Mannix talked to NEVN about some of the life lessons that came from the success they enjoyed this season.

“Being successful in a team sport at the very end shows how mature you are — How dedicated to a cause you are.  There’s lots of things that come up during that journey that could be a distraction and if somebody was looking to have an excuse to fail, could really magnify something that was really a moment in time and not a reason to give a lot of energy to, and there was probably half-a-dozen things that came up in our season where our team decided to not latch onto the dramatics of it and just stay focused on what they need to do,” Mannix said.  “I told them…this is the recipe for success no matter what you do — If you’re a CEO.  If you’re a Mom.  If you’re a nurse.  If you’re an FBI agent.  Whatever it is you decide to do — Being able to perform in a group like that and keep the dramatics out of it and stay focused on the success and what you’re actually there to do is the life lesson in this — And remember it and play it over and over and over the rest of your life and I think that’s the key to success.”

Mannix also thanked SCC Athletic Director Mike McNally and Interim President Chris Haines for their support throughout the season.