Nov. 27, 2006
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Indianapolis, Ind. - Horizon League Champion University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (24-5) will take on Iowa State University (20-10) in the first round of the NCAA Women's Volleyball Championship, as the 64-team tournament field was announced Sunday (Nov. 26). The contest is scheduled for this Friday (Dec. 1) at 5 p.m. Central time (6 p.m. Eastern) at the Wisconsin Field House on the campus of the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
UW-Milwaukee earned an automatic entry into the tournament after winning the Horizon League Championship on Sunday (Nov. 19). The Panthers' 3-0 (30-24, 30-23, 30-22) victory over the University of Illinois at Chicago gave UW-Milwaukee a 24-5 record for the season, and extended their winning streak to a school-record 15 matches. Iowa State gained an at-large berth to the NCAA tournament after tying for fourth place in the the Big 12 standings.
The winner of the UW-Milwaukee / Iowa State matchup will take on either No. 10 Wisconsin (24-6) or the University of Notre Dame (18-13) in the second round of the Championships on Sunday (Dec. 3). Wisconsin earned an at-large bid to the tournament after posting a third-place finish in Big Ten play. UW-Milwaukee fell to the Badgers 3-0 on Sept. 9 as part of the Pepsi Panther Invitational. Notre Dame also gained an at-large selection after losing to the University of Louisville in the Big East Championship.
UW-Milwaukee makes its sixth NCAA tournament appearance and first since 2002. The Panthers are ranked in the top-20 nationally in kills per game (16.8), assists per game (15.28) and winning percentage (.828). UW-Milwaukee went 2-3 against other teams participating in this year's tournament, posting wins over Alabama (17-12) and Oral Roberts (26-8) and losses to Wisconsin (24-6), Louisville (25-6) and Winthrop (34-2).
The Panthers are led by senior middle blockers, Horizon League Player of the Year Cheryl Hegemann and Horizon League Tournament Most Valuable Player Sarah Moore. The pair finished near the top of the League at the net as Hegemann averaged 3.66 kills per game and Moore hit .333 for the season.
The regionals will be held at four sites around the country; Gainesville, Florida- Honolulu, Hawaii- Seattle, Washington-, and Austin, Texas. The 2006 NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Championship will take place at the Qwest Center in Omaha, Nebraska, on Dec. 14 and 16.
NCAA Tournament Bracket
