University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Receive No. 7 Seed in 2019 NCAA Championships
12/1/2019 9:06:00 PM | Volleyball
The University of Minnesota volleyball program received the No. 7 overall seed in the 2019 NCAA Division I Volleyball Championships and will host the First and Second Round of the tournament, Friday and Saturday night, announced tonight on ESPNU.
Iowa State and Creighton will compete in the first match of the evening, set for 4:30 p.m., followed by the Gophers facing Fairfield at 7 p.m. The winner of each match will advance to the Second Round, set for 7 p.m. All matches will be played at Maturi Pavilion. Should the Gophers advance out of the Second Round, Minnesota is in the Texas Region and travel to Austin, Texas for the NCAA Regional Semifinal, Dec. 13-14. Pittsburgh is the host city for the NCAA Championships, Dec. 19-21 as the national semifinals and championship match will be played at PPG Paints Arena.
The 2019 season marks the 24th year the Golden Gophers have advanced to the NCAA tournament. Receiving an at-large bid this year, the Gophers have now advanced to the tournament five-straight seasons and seven of eight years under head coach Hugh McCutcheon.
Minnesota is one of seven Big Ten teams to make the 2019 NCAA tournament and is one of the league's five seeded teams. Wisconsin holds the highest seed at No. 4, followed by Nebraska (5), Minnesota (7), Penn State (11) and Purdue (16). Michigan and Illinois also advanced to the tournament. In all, the Gophers faced 10 teams that made up the field of 64. Along with the six other Big Ten teams Minnesota faced this season, the Gophers also competed against Florida, Florida State, Texas and Stanford this year.
The Gophers enter the NCAA tournament with a 23-5 overall record and finished 17-3 in the Big Ten. That mark ranked in a tie for second in the Big Ten, along with Nebraska and Penn State.
Fairfield will be making their 11th trip to the NCAA Championship and their fourth in five years after securing the 2019 MAAC title with a 3-1 win over Quinnipiac. They went 24-5 overall and 17-1 in conference action. Iowa State received an at-large bid and is making its 14th all-time NCAA Championships appearance, including 13 the past 14 years. The Cyclones finished the regular season 17-11, 8-8 in Big 12 play. Creighton received an at-large bid and enter the NCAA tournament with a 24-5 overall record, 17-1 in Big East play.
Ticket Information for NCAA First and Second Round
Current season ticket holders have until Monday, Dec. 2, at 4 p.m. to secure tickets, while Gopher Scores members have the ability to purchase tickets starting Tuesday, Dec. 3. All-session general public tickets go on sale Wednesday at 9 a.m. All tickets for the First and Second Rounds will be available through the Gopher ticket office. Like the regular season, University of Minnesota students will be able to claim their free admission ticket, first come, first served, at Maturi Pavilion.
Schedule
Friday, Dec. 6
4:30 p.m. - Iowa State vs. Creighton
7 p.m. (or 30 minutes following the first match) - Fairfield vs. Minnesota
Saturday, Dec. 7
7 p.m. - Iowa/Creighton vs. Fairfield/Minnesota
.@McCutcheonMN talks with the media about finishing the #B1G strong and getting ready for the postseason. pic.twitter.com/TVpBUEzD23
— Minnesota Volleyball (@GopherVBall) December 2, 2019