Eastern Michigan Athletics
EMU Volleyball to Face No. 3 Illinois in NCAA Tournament
11/25/2018 9:04:00 PM | Volleyball
The Eagles make the program's first appearance in the NCAA Tournament Friday, Nov. 30
NCAA Tournament Bracket.
Reaction Video.
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University volleyball team made history one week ago as it earned the program's first-ever trip to the NCAA Tournament, winning the Mid-American Conference Tournament Championship, 3-2, over Miami University. Tonight, the NCAA announced that the Eagles will travel to the No. 3 seed University of Illinois for the opening round, Nov. 30.
Eastern will enter the Champaign, Ill. Regional as the No. 4 seed, taking on Illinois, who is the No. 1 seed at the site. First serve is set for 8 p.m. inside Huff Hall.
The Eagles (21-13) punched the program's ticket to the NCAA Tournament by running through the MAC Tournament as the No. 5 seed. After sweeping No. 8 Kent State to kick off the tournament, EMU then upset No. 4 Buffalo, 3-1, No. 1 seed Bowling Green, 3-1, and the host school Miami in a 3-2 comeback victory. Redshirt junior Cassie Haut (Monroe, Mich.-St. Mary Catholic Central) was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player, while seniors Alyssa LaFace (Allen Park, Mich.-Allen Park) and Jordan Smith (Solon, Iowa-Solon) were each named to the All-Tournament team.
Illinois (28-3) is not only the top seed of the regional, but was also the No. 4 seed in the most recent American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top-25 poll. The Illini have rattled off 13 straight victories, including wins over No. 7 Penn State, No. 8 Wisconsin, No. 9 Nebraska, and No. 13 Michigan.
Joining Eastern Michigan and Illinois in Champaign will be University of Dayton and the University of Louisville. The winners of the two matches will face off in the second round on Saturday, Dec. 1, at 8 p.m.
First- and second-round matches will be played Nov. 29 through Dec. 1 at 16 campus sites. Teams winning both matches will move on to regional play Dec. 7 and 8. Regionals for the NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Championship will be held at four non-predetermined campus sites, which will be announced after play concludes, on Dec. 1. At each site, four teams will compete in single-elimination regional semifinal competition.
The regional winners will advance to the national semifinals and championship final hosted by Minnesota on Dec. 13 and 15 at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The national semifinal matches will broadcast on ESPN and the championship match will broadcast on ESPN2.
Six programs are making their first appearances in the tournament this season: Bryant, Eastern Michigan, Florida Gulf Coast, South Dakota, Syracuse and the Navy.
Check back to EMUEagles.com for ticket information and a full preview as the Green and White head to its first NCAA Tournament.
Reaction Video.
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University volleyball team made history one week ago as it earned the program's first-ever trip to the NCAA Tournament, winning the Mid-American Conference Tournament Championship, 3-2, over Miami University. Tonight, the NCAA announced that the Eagles will travel to the No. 3 seed University of Illinois for the opening round, Nov. 30.
Eastern will enter the Champaign, Ill. Regional as the No. 4 seed, taking on Illinois, who is the No. 1 seed at the site. First serve is set for 8 p.m. inside Huff Hall.
The Eagles (21-13) punched the program's ticket to the NCAA Tournament by running through the MAC Tournament as the No. 5 seed. After sweeping No. 8 Kent State to kick off the tournament, EMU then upset No. 4 Buffalo, 3-1, No. 1 seed Bowling Green, 3-1, and the host school Miami in a 3-2 comeback victory. Redshirt junior Cassie Haut (Monroe, Mich.-St. Mary Catholic Central) was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player, while seniors Alyssa LaFace (Allen Park, Mich.-Allen Park) and Jordan Smith (Solon, Iowa-Solon) were each named to the All-Tournament team.
Illinois (28-3) is not only the top seed of the regional, but was also the No. 4 seed in the most recent American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top-25 poll. The Illini have rattled off 13 straight victories, including wins over No. 7 Penn State, No. 8 Wisconsin, No. 9 Nebraska, and No. 13 Michigan.
Joining Eastern Michigan and Illinois in Champaign will be University of Dayton and the University of Louisville. The winners of the two matches will face off in the second round on Saturday, Dec. 1, at 8 p.m.
First- and second-round matches will be played Nov. 29 through Dec. 1 at 16 campus sites. Teams winning both matches will move on to regional play Dec. 7 and 8. Regionals for the NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Championship will be held at four non-predetermined campus sites, which will be announced after play concludes, on Dec. 1. At each site, four teams will compete in single-elimination regional semifinal competition.
The regional winners will advance to the national semifinals and championship final hosted by Minnesota on Dec. 13 and 15 at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The national semifinal matches will broadcast on ESPN and the championship match will broadcast on ESPN2.
Six programs are making their first appearances in the tournament this season: Bryant, Eastern Michigan, Florida Gulf Coast, South Dakota, Syracuse and the Navy.
Check back to EMUEagles.com for ticket information and a full preview as the Green and White head to its first NCAA Tournament.
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