Huskies Make 10th-Straight NCAA Tourney, Will Travel
November 27, 2011 | Volleyball
Nov. 27, 2011
SEATTLE - The Washington volleyball team is NCAA Tournament bound for the 10th year in a row, and learned today it will be bound for Minneapolis as well, as the NCAA Volleyball Selection Committee unveiled the 2011 bracket this afternoon on ESPNU. The Huskies will face Western Michigan in the first round on Friday, December 3, at the University of Minnesota.
"We just have to prepare," said 11th-year Head Coach Jim McLaughlin. "I've always told my team it's not who we play, where we play, when we play, it's how we play, and we've got to stay consistent in our preparation, and that starts (now)."
The Huskies had hoped to be one of the top sixteen seeds in order to host the first and second rounds, but only three Pac-12 teams were seeded: No. 7 USC, No. 9 UCLA, and No. 11 Stanford. Washington (23-7) tied Stanford for fourth in the conference this year with a 15-7 Pac-12 record. Seven Pac-12 teams made the tournament, tied with the Big 12 for second-most behind the eight selections from the Big Ten.
Texas earned the No. 1 overall seed, followed by No. 2 Nebraska, No. 3 Illinois, and No. 4 Iowa State. Four-time defending champion Penn State is seeded eighth.
The Huskies and Broncos of Western Michigan will play at 2:30 p.m. Pacific time on Friday at Minnesota's Sports Pavilion. Later that evening, Minnesota, the No. 13 overall seed, will host North Dakota State, with the winner of each match then playing on Saturday at 5:30 p.m. Pacific time.
Washington is in the Minneapolis Region as well, as the University of Minnesota is also one of four predetermined hosts for the round of 16 and quarterfinals. Additional regional sites include Honolulu, Hawaii, Lexington, Kentucky, and Gainesville, Florida. The Final Four will be in San Antonio, Texas at the Alamodome on Dec. 15 and 17.
