FULLERTON, Calif. – The quest for a threepeat has begun, as team four got their third national championship experience underway Thursday night in Fullerton. With a familiar foe in the Vanguard Lions on the schedule, it came down to the final quarter, as Jessup advances with a 17-14 finish.
 
Jessup moves on in the winner's bracket, while the Lions will take on OUAZ tomorrow in the first elimination contest of the week.
 
Head coach Alexis Blunk spoke after the win and talked about the work the Warriors have put in since their loss to Hope International in the GSAC Championship. "We've just been practicing and working to get stronger every day. These kids, the last two weeks, have really come together as a team. I think that's what we were missing before that, was the family, unity, culture kind of feel."
 
Blunk continued, "After GSAC, we came together and were like, we can do this, we can absolutely threepeat. So, let's come together. Let's work our butts off, and let's go for that title again."
 
Thursday was the 14th all-time meeting between the Warriors and Lions and the fifth to take place in STUNT Nationals. Jessup is now 9-5 against the Lions, with those nine victories coming in a row. Vanguard's last win against the Warriors was in the 2022, one day before Jessup took down Vanguard for their first national title.
 
The Warriors took a narrow four-point advantage into Thursday's second half, but the small deficit was no problem for the Lions as they have historically shown their best performances in the third quarter.
 
Vanguard trimmed that hole to just one point as the Warriors entered the fourth leading 8-7.
 
The turning point of the game came midway through the final quarter, as Blunk called a timeout before calling routine eight. Vanguard only performed one of the three parts of the routine, setting up a situation where Jessup could steal two or three points and win the game.
 
It ended up being a sweep of the routine for Jessup, as all three points put them on top by four with one routine to go, securing a victory.
 
On that decision to go for routine eight, Blunk added, "It's a little tricky, especially against Vanguard, because they don't have all three routines. So, we have to execute it with a certain number of minors. So I called them together, and I'm like, I know we can do this 100 percent. I believe in us. You guys go out there and do it. Let's go get all three of those points."
 
The victory sends Jessup into the winner's bracket, where they will face the winner of Friday morning's contest between Missouri Baptist and Hope International. Jessup will be on the mat tomorrow at 3:30 p.m.
   
Jessup University is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), and the Golden State Athletic Conference (GSAC). For additional information regarding Jessup Athletics, visit www.jessupathletics.com; visit www.jessup.edu for more information on Jessup University. Follow Jessup Athletics on social media: Jessup University Athletics (Facebook) and @JessupAthletics (Twitter & Instagram).