University of Minnesota Athletics
Minnesota to Host First and Second Rounds
11/28/2010 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
The Minnesota volleyball team (24-8) will host the first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament at the Sports Pavilion on Dec. 3-4. Minnesota will face North Dakota State (20-10) on Friday, Dec. 3 at 7 p.m., and Creighton (20-11) will face Iowa State (20-8) on Dec. 3 at 4:30 p.m.
On Saturday, Dec. 4, the winners of the first two matches will face each other at 6 p.m. This marks the second time in three years that the Gophers will host the first and second rounds. In 2008, Minnesota also hosted Iowa State and North Dakota State.
The Gophers will be the No. 3 seed in the Seattle Regional, and are the No. 10 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament. Nebraska is the No. 1 seed in the regional (No. 2 overall), California is the No. 2 seed (No. 7 overall) and Hawai'i is No. 4 (No. 15 overall).
"You play all year to get a chance to host the first and second Rounds, so we are extremely excited to get this opportunity," said Minnesota Head Coach Mike Hebert. "We are familiar with all three programs coming in and have a lot of respect for each of them. Our team has played through a lot this season, and we feel very well about the way we playing heading into postseason play. After a match like last night's against Penn State, we are also extremely happy to have two more dates to play in front of our great home fans."
All-Session tickets for the first and second rounds are on sale for $20 for chairbacks, $17 for general admission and $12 for senior or student rates. Tickets can be purchased in person starting on the morning of Monday, Nov. 30, over the phone at 1-800-UGOPHER or online at gophersports.com.
Since seeding the top 16 seeds begin in 2000 in the NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball Tournament, Minnesota has been seeded No. 13 or higher eight times. The Golden Gophers were seeded No. 4 in 2000, No. 7 in 2002, No. 13 in 2003, No. 4 in 2004, No. 8 in 2006, No. 6 in 2008 and No. 11 in 2009.
This year’s NCAA Tournament selection marks the 12th straight year the Golden Gophers have participated in the event. That streak is currently the second longest in the Big Ten.
Minnesota finished the regular-season 24-8 and tied for second in the Big Ten at 14-6. It marked the eighth time in 12 years the Gophers have finished second or higher, and the 11th time in 12 years that the Golden Gophers finished third or higher. Minnesota has now won at least 14 matches in conference play in 10 of the last 12 seasons, and has finished the regular-season with at least 24 wins in seven of the last 12 years. The Golden Gophers finished the season winning seven straight matches, and went 9-1 in the second half of the Big Ten season.
North Dakota State, who received the automatic bid out of the Summit League, is 20-10, tied for first in the regular-season in conference play at 14-4 and won in five sets over IPFW in Fargo in the conference tournament final. The Bison will make their second trip to Minnesota in three years. In 2008, Minnesota defeated North Dakota State in three sets in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Creighton, who received an at-large out of the Missouri Valley, enters the NCAA Tournament with a 20-11 overall record and finished third in the conference at 13-5. Minnesota won the last meeting against the Bluejays in three sets in the 2008 season opener.
Iowa State, who received an at-large bid out of the Big 12, enters the tournament with a 20-8 overall record and finished tied for third in the conference at 13-7. The Cyclones advanced to the Regional Semifinals last year and the Regional Finals in 2008. Iowa State defeated Minnesota in the second round of the 2008 NCAA Tournament in the last meeting between the two teams in postseason. The Gophers avenged the loss with a four-set victory at home against the Cyclones at the Sports Pavilion last year.
Eight Big Ten teams made the field of 64, including the Golden Gophers. Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State and Purdue will join Minnesota in the NCAA Tournament. Four Big Ten teams also received top 16 seeds. Penn State (No. 4), Illinois (No. 8) and Purdue (No. 16) joined the Golden Gophers on the list.
Overall, Minnesota will be making its 16th NCAA Tournament appearance in school history, and its 14th under current head coach Mike Hebert. The Golden Gophers advanced to the NCAA Regional Finals in 2003, 04, 06 and 09, the NCAA National Semifinals in 2003, 2004 and 2009 and have also played in the NCAA Regional round in seven of the last 11 seasons.
Minnesota is 30-15 in 45 NCAA Tournament matches. The Golden Gophers have also gone 14-1 in first round matches and 14-2 in home NCAA Tournament matches.
