Panthers Selected For NCAA Volleyball Tournament
The UNI volleyball team is going to the NCAA Tournament for the 21st time in program history.
The Panthers earned an at-large bid to the tournament when the pairings were announced during a live broadcast on ESPNU Sunday night (Nov. 26, 2017). This marks the third-straight season that UNI has earned an at-large berth to the 64-team field.
UNI (26-8 overall, 15-3 MVC) will face the Louisville Cardinals (24-6 overall, 18-2 ACC) in Minneapolis, Minn., at 4:30 p.m. on Friday (Dec. 1). The winner advances to play a second-round match against either North Dakota or Minnesota, the tournament's No. 7 overall seed.
The Panthers have posted 14 victories all-time in their previous 20 NCAA Tournament appearances, advancing to at least the second round 11 times. UNI has made three Sweet 16 appearances (1999, 2001, 2002).
Coach Bobbi Petersen has led the Panthers to 13 NCAA Tournament trips. UNI is 9-12 in the tournament play under Petersen, including two trips to the Sweet 16 (2001, 2002).
The Panthers' last NCAA Tournament appearance came in 2016, when they dropped a first-round, five-set thriller to Creighton in Lawrence, Kan.
This marks the fifth at-large selection overall for UNI. The Panthers also earned at-large bids in 2008, 2012, 2015 and 2016.