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CHARLESTON, S.C. – Radford bounced back from a 2-0 deficit and stunned second-seeded Winthrop, 3-2, (20-25, 15-25, 25-20, 25-21, 15-13) in the semifinals of the 2011 Big South Volleyball Tournament Friday evening. With the win, the Highlanders advance to their first championship since 2001, where they will meet top-seeded Liberty Sunday at 2 p.m.

After dropping the first two games, the Highlanders (17-14) turned the tables and forced a fifth set. Carrying the momentum, Radford used a 7-2 run to take a commanding 14-8 lead in game five. However, the Lady Eagles (20-9) would not go down quietly as they pushed across five straight points to make it 14-13. The surge was ended and the comeback completed when freshman Rachel Wiechecki (Wilmington, Del./Ursuline Academy) slammed home her team-best 13th kill for a 15-13 triumph.

Wiechecki registered her team-best seventh double-double with 19 digs. Senior Carly Fleming (Manassas, Va./Osbourne Park) added 10 kills and a season-best seven total blocks (one solo).

Freshman Rachel Brummitt (Plano, Texas/Plano West) recorded a match-high 30 digs, her fourth 30-plus dig performance of the season.

The third-seeded Highlanders (17-14) last faced the same Lady Flames in the 2001 Championship, which Liberty came out on top, 3-1. The team's also met in 1999, a 3-2 victory for the Flames.

Radford got off to slow starts in games one and two and dug itself into an early 0-2 deficit. The Eagles, behind .359 and .257 attack percentages, raced out to 10-3 and 9-3 leads they would never relinquish for 25-20 and 25-15 victories.

Behind an 8-0 spurt, Radford took command of game three, 12-4. The Eagles would cut the deficit to 22-20 before a service error and back-to-back attack errors by Winthrop put Radford right back into the match.

The Highlanders erased a 12-8 deficit in game four with a 9-2 run and led the rest of the way to even the match at 2-2. After Winthrop got within, 22-21, a kill by sophomore Jesse Miedema (Huron, Ohio) ended the late surge. Following an error, Miedema and Fleming combined on a block to send it to a deciding fifth set.

Miedema finished with eight kills (.318) and five block assists. A trio of setters saw time for the Highlanders, led by freshman Christine Beckham's (Ashburn, Va./Stone Bridge) 19 assists. She also chipped in with two aces.

Junior Emily Hayes (Bartlett, Ill./Bartlett) and sophomore Emily Carlin (Downington, Pa./Bishop Shanahan) added seven and six kills, respectively. Carlin also helped out with 13 digs and three service aces.