University of Minnesota Athletics
2016 Final Four
The University of Minnesota advanced to its fifth Final Four in program history and second straight in 2016, while setting the bar high for future teams. Minnesota started the season traveling to three various locations to begin the season. The Golden Gophers started the trek to Palo Alto, Calif., and went 1-1 against San Diego and host Stanford. Traveling to San Juan, Puerto Rico, the Gophers dominated the San Juan Clasico when it defeated Texas A & M and Florida State, 3-0 and 3-1. Minnesota then rounded out the road competition by earning a pair of wins against Louisville and North Carolina to go 5-1 before setting foot on its home court. After it swept the Diet Coke Classic field (North Dakota, Toledo and Green Bay), the Gophers were set to begin the daunting Big Ten season.
Minnesota went 4-0 to begin conference action as it opened with wins over Maryland, Ohio State, Indiana and Purdue. Following the win over the Boilermakers, the Gophers took over the No. 1 ranking in the latest American Volleyball Coaches poll. It marked the first time the Golden Gophers had been listed as the top team in the nation in 12 years, dating back to Sept. 27, 2004. The ranking, however, was short as the Gophers fell to Penn State, 3-2, in State College, Pa. After a sweep over Northwestern, the Gophers swept Wisconsin, at a time when the Badgers also held the No. 1 ranking, in Madison, Wis. Minnesota went 2-2 in the next four matches as it dropped five-set decisions to Michigan State and Nebraska, and defeated Iowa and Rutgers. The win over the Scarlet Knights, however, began a 14-match win streak, including a redemption 3-0 win over Penn State at the Sports Pavilion.
The Gophers closed out the Big Ten regular season with a challenging schedule as they faced four ranked teams in four straight home matches in just eight days. The Gophers showed their tendency as they won all four by five-set victories. The four-match onslaught began against No. 21 Michigan State, where the Gophers won, 25-17, 25-18, 21-25, 19-25 and 18-16 as Alexis Hart had 20 kills. Minnesota then defeated No. 18 Michigan 25-23, 25-23, 23-25, 23-25, 15-12 in the first win. Sarah Wilhite contributed 26 kills. The next match was a battle between No. 1 vs. No. 2 as the Nebraska Cornhuskers came to town. Trailing 2-0 and down 23-20 in the third set, the Gophers stormed back and defeated Nebraska, 3-2 (21-25, 22-25, 28-26, 25-17, 17-15). The win was also in front of a sellout crowd of 5,401 fans. The battle tested Gophers weren’t done just yet. On senior night in front of 5,307 fans, the Gophers defeated border rival Wisconsin 22-25, 25-17, 11-25, 25-17, 15-8. With the win, the Gophers finished tied for second in the Big Ten standings and went 17-3 in league action.
For the second-straight year, Minnesota held the overall No. 2 seed as it entered the NCAA Tournament. The Gophers hosted North Dakota, Hawaii and Southern Cal in the First and Second Rounds. Minnesota defeated both UND and Hawaii, 3-0, to advance to the Sweet 16. New in 2016, top eight seeds had the opportunity to host in their home facilities through the Fourth Round. The Gophers welcomed Missouri, North Carolina and UCLA to the Pavilion for the NCAA Regionals the next week. As the Gophers defeated Missouri and UCLA defeated UNC, the Gophers defeated UCLA, 3-0, for their second-straight trip to the NCAA Championships. With the home stretch completed, the Gophers went undefeated at the Pavilion and held a perfect 17-0 record on their home court. In all, the Gophers went 40 straight matches without dropping a contest at the Pavilion. The record spanned over four seasons (2014-2017).
Minnesota’s run, however, ended against the eventual champion, Stanford, as the Gophers fell, 3-1, in the National Semifinal. Sarah Wilhite was named to the NCAA All-Tournament Team for the Gophers.
Sarah Wilhite’s success in 2016 marked another first in Gopher program history. Wilhite was named the AVCA National Player of the Year. Going from never receiving even an all-conference honorable mention award, Wilhite saved her best season for her last. She was named a four-time Big Ten Player of the Week and the AVCA National Player of the Week once. Wilhite became the first Gopher to ever receive this award. She finished her career with over 1,100 kills. Paige Tapp also added another notch in program history when she was awarded the Senior CLASS award winner, which given out to just one student-athlete in each sport, embodies the true student-athlete, in the classroom, on the court and in the community. Samantha Seliger-Swenson and Wilhite garnered First Team All-America honors, while Hannah Tapp was named Second Team. Molly Lohman and Alexis Hart received honorable mention accolades.