Volleyball Team Earns Fourth Straight NCAA Tournament Berth, Sixth Overall

MEDFORD - For the fourth straight year and the sixth time overall, the Tufts volleyball team has been selected to the NCAA Championship field. Head coach Cora Thompson's Jumbos (25-5) earned an at-large berth and will play Roger Williams (28-3) in the first round at Springfield College on Friday. The starting time has not been announced.

The Springfield regional will also feature the host Pride (31-2) versus Westfield State (15-20), UMass Boston (26-4) against Polytechnic, NY (23-14), and Bowdoin (26-2) versus Baruch, NY (24-10). The Tufts-Roger Williams winner will play Springfield/Westfield State on Saturday (Nov. 12), and the regional final is scheduled for Sunday (Nov. 13). The regional champion advances to the NCAA quarterfinals at Washington University in St. Louis on Nov. 18.

Springfield has set up a regional championship website at - www.springfieldcollege.edu/womensvolleyballchampionship

Both live stats and live video will be offered by the hosts, both free of charge:

Live Stats -  http://winus.spfldcol.edu/sports/xlive.htm

Live Video - http://www.springfieldcollege.edu/homepage/athletics.nsf/WomensVolleyballChampionship/7EE331BD05458CA7852577D20061CBF5

Springfield will also be providing constant updates throughout the week as well as throughout each game via their  Twitter account - @NCAAVB11_SC

Three NESCAC teams qualified for the 2011 NCAA field. Along with Tufts and Bowdoin at the Springfield regional, conference finalist Middlebury (21-8) was shipped out-of-region and will play at the Clarkson, NY regional.

The Jumbos were 9-1 in NESCAC this fall, losing only at first-place Bowdoin 3-0. Tufts earned the #2 seed in the conference tournament. After defeating Williams in the quarterfinals 3-2, the Jumbos lost 3-1 against Middlebury in the semi-finals. Bowdoin went on to win the league title.

Tufts was 4-4 against NCAA qualifying teams in 2011. They split with Middlebury, routing the Panthers in three during the conference season. They also split against Springfield, losing in four at the MIT Invitational September 24 and winning in four during the Hall of Fame Invite on October 22. The Jumbos also defeated Colby-Sawyer and Westfield State in three, but lost to UMass Boston in five.

Tufts has two players ranked among the top 20 in the nation statistically. For matches through October 30, junior setter Kendall Lord (LaJolla, CA) is 15th with 10.61 assists per set. First-year Izzy Kuhel (Brisbane, CA) is ranked 17th in the NCAA with 1.22 blocks per set.

Tufts is 6-5 overall in NCAA Tournament action. The Jumbos have been in the NCAA's previously in 1996, 2005, 2008, 2009 and 2010. Last year they lost a first-round match at Springfield in three sets. They were the 2009 regional champions, defeating Maine Maritime, Wellesley and Williams in straight sets. At the 2009 NCAA Quarterfinals in Ohio, they lost to host Hope College 3-1. In 2008, Tufts was eliminated in the second round against Wellesley in five sets. In 2005, they reached the regional final where they lost in three to host Colby. The 1996 team lost its first-round NCAA match at Coast Guard, 3-0.

Sixty-four teams overall were picked for the 2011 Division III Championship.

2011 NCAA Championship bracket

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