The No.15 ranked University of Minnesota Duluth volleyball team travels to the Twin Cities this week to take on No.3 ranked Wayne State College (NE) in the quarterfinal round of the NCAA Central Region Championship tournament.

MATCH INFORMATION

Thursday

2:30 PM vs. Wayne State College (NE)

Watch Live (Pay-Per-View): https://www.ncaa.com/game/6195822

Live Stats: https://cspbears.com/sidearmstats/wvball/summary

THE SEASON SO FAR

The Bulldogs ended the regular season 17-9 before the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) tournament. UMD was able to defeat No.7 Southwest Minnesota State in the opening round of the conference tournament. UMD moved on to Wayne, NE to take on the No.2 ranked Concordia St. Paul Golden Bears in the semifinal round, where they lost in a marathon 2-3 match. The Bulldogs were seeded 7th in the central region during the NCAA selection show on Monday, Nov. 20, following their strong performance at the NSIC tournament.

SCOUTING REPORT

Wayne State College (NE) has an overall 28-2 record in the 2023 season, following their unexpected loss in the semifinal round of the NSIC tournament. The Wildcats spent much of the season ranked No.1 in the country, but fell to No.3 after their loss which allowed fellow conference rival Concordia St. Paul to move into the No.2 spot in the country. The Wildcats received the 2nd seed in the NCAA selection show, and the Bulldogs will look to continue their recent success against ranked teams and to capitalize on WSC's most recent loss coming into this tournament. 

LOOKING AHEAD

The Bulldogs will look to take on the winner of the 3rd seeded Southwest Minnesota State versus the 6th seeded Nebraska Kearney in the semifinal round, should they be able to take down the Wildcats. The semifinal round would be held on Friday, Dec.1, with times subject to change.