2018 NCAA TOURNAMENT BRACKET
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (November 25, 2018) – The Northern Arizona volleyball team will journey to the Palouse to open the 2018 NCAA Tournament versus Washington State on Friday, Nov. 30 in Pullman, Wash. The Lumberjacks and the No. 16 seed Cougars will meet in the first round at 8 p.m. MST.
"Washington State has really physical outside hitters and one of them (McKenna Woodford) is actually from Arizona; our players know her very well," said head coach
Ken Murphy. "The thing that stands out about them is that they play with a ton of energy, especially on their home court, and going into a match like that you know you have to match it. I think we're a team who does that really well."
NAU and Washington State will play the second of two first round matches on Friday in the night cap. Tennessee – the second-place team in the SEC – and Colorado State – the Mountain West champions – will kick things off in Pullman at 5 p.m. MST.
At 26-8 overall, NAU earned its third NCAA Tournament bid by winning the Big Sky Championship Saturday night in three sets over Idaho. The Lumberjacks, who also claimed a share of the regular season conference title with a 15-3 Big Sky record, will head into Friday's contest on a 13-match winning streak.
The Lumberjacks are 0-2 all-time in the NCAA Tournament with three-set losses to North Carolina (1999) and San Diego (2015).
Washington State, ranked No. 20 in last week's AVCA Coaches Poll, finished fourth in the Pac-12 and carries a 21-9 overall record into the NCAA Tournament. The Cougars, one of eight Pac-12 teams announced in the tournament field, posted a 12-8 conference record and were ranked as high as No. 18 nationally.
This year will mark Washington State's third straight NCAA Tournament appearance. The Cougars have advanced to the second round in each of the last two years.
NAU and Washington State have met just once before in 1980 with the 'Jacks defeating the Cougars in four sets.
