Kearney, Neb. – The 12th-ranked Nebraska-Kearney volleyball team will try and defend its Central Regional title when NCAA Tournament play begins tomorrow (Dec. 2) in Warrensburg, Mo.

The Lopers, in the NCAA's for a 22nd straight season and for the 25th time overall, advanced to the Elite Eight in 2019 after beating Oklahoma Baptist, Northern State and Concordia-St. Paul in the Health & Sports Center. UNK then won in the national quarterfinals and national semifinals before falling to Cal State San Bernardino in the national championship. There was no NCAA Division II Tournament in 2020-21 season due to the pandemic. 

This year's Central Regional features seven nationally-ranked teams with MIAA regular season and tournament champion Central Missouri serving as host. The Jennies (28-3) are 12-1 at home and 6-0 in five-set matches including a 3-2 decision over the Lopers in the MIAA tourney semifinals. UCM then rallied from a 2-0 hole to beat Northwest Missouri in the MIAA tourney finals.

UNK (25-6) and the Bearcats (26-5) will be meeting for the third time this fall with each team winning on the others home court. In the "non-countable" 2021 spring season, the Lopers went 2-1 against Northwest, winning a 3-2 decision in the MIAA Spring Invite. First serve is noon on Thursday and fans can follow watch via The MIAA Network, listen to The River 93.1/106.1 FM or follow live stats. The UNK-NW winner will play Friday at 5 p.m. with the regional title match set for Saturday at 7 p.m.

The Lopers are 32-24 all-time in the NCAA's, holding a 13-16 neutral site record and a 4-4 in true road matches. UNK advanced to the Elite Eight in 1995, 1996, 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2019.
 

Seed    National Rank/School/Record … Bid
1.            #1 Central Missouri (28-3) …. Automatic bid from the MIAA
2.            #7 St. Cloud State (27-4) …. Automatic bid from the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference
3.            #4 Northwest Missouri State (26-5) … At-Large
4.            #10 Winona State (28-4) …. At-Large
5.            #7 Washburn (26-5) … At-Large
6.            #12 UNK (25-6) …. At-Large
7.            #15 Concordia-St. Paul (22-8) …. At-Large
8.            Arkansas Tech (22-7) … Automatic bid from the Great American Conference

Thursday, Dec. 2
12 p.m.      No. 3 NW vs. No. 6 UNK
2:30 p.m.   No. 2 SCSU vs. No. 7 CU
5 p.m.        No. 1 UCM vs. No. 8 ATU
7:30 p.m.   No. 4 WSU vs. No. 5 WU
 
Friday, Dec. 3
5 p.m.        NW/UNK Winner vs. SCSU/CU Winner
7:30 p.m.   WSU/WU Winner Vs. UCM/ATU Winner
 
Saturday, Dec. 4
7 p.m.     Championship Match