Women's volleyball earns top seed, makes NCAA history

Photo: GoPSUsports.com Alisha Glass (left), Arielle Wilson (right) and the Penn State women's volleyball team begin their quest for a second consecutive NCAA Championship on Friday (Dec. 5). at Rec Hall.

•2008 NCAA Bracket (Printable)

•2008 NCAA Bracket (Agate Format)

•2008 Interactive NCAA Bracket

University Park, Pa. — The top-ranked and defending national champion Penn State women's volleyball team (32-0, 20-0 Big Ten) earned the No. 1 overall seed in the 2008 NCAA Tournament and will host Northeast champion Long Island (19-11) on Friday, Dec. 5 at 6 p.m. at Rec Hall. Ivy League champion Yale (20-5) and Mid-American champion Ohio (24-7) square off at 3:30 p.m. on Friday. The winners of each of the matches will meet in the NCAA Second Round contest at 4 p.m. at Rec Hall on Saturday, Dec. 6. Penn State will also host the NCAA Regional Championship on Friday and Saturday, Dec. 12-13 at Rec Hall.

On Saturday, Penn State closed out its season with a 3-0 (25-22, 25-18, 25-13) sweep at No. 20 Michigan. In doing so, Penn State accomplished something no other team in the history of NCAA women's volleyball — in any division — has ever done: win every individual game of the regular season. Penn State claimed its 97th straight individual game victory, as well as its NCAA-record 58th consective match victory, and improved to 32-0 on the season. The Lions went 20-0 in conference play for the second straight year and have won 45 consecutive Big Ten matches.

The Michigan match will be replayed on the Big Ten Network Tuesday (Dec. 2) at 10 a.m. For highlights, click here.

"We're excited about the opportunity to participate in the NCAA Tournament and we're appreciative of our administration to support our efforts," said head coach Russ Rose. "We're familiar with the teams in our sub-Regional but we need to be prepared for the reality that this tournament is one-and-done. We're going to have to be ready to play each match."

The Nittany Lions will be making their 28th consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament and are one of only two programs in the nation (Stanford) to be selected to every postseason event since its inception in 1981.

"We're all very anxious to start NCAA play," said senior middle hitter Christa Harmotto (Aliquippa, Pa.). "We're one of 64 teams all fighting for the same thing and the slate is clean. All of the records this season are nice, but that's not what we're concentrating on. The Big Ten season flew by and now we're ready to start the third chapter and make another run at the title."

Penn State is one of five Big Ten teams to make the tournament cut. In a 64-team field where only the top 16 teams are seeded, the Nittany Lions join No. 6 seed Minnesota (26-6), No. 9 seed Illinois (24-7), No. 10 seed Purdue (24-8) and Michigan (24-8).

The Nittany Lions have earned the right to host the first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament 22 times since 1981, including the last 19 seasons. Penn State has compiled an overall record of 54-25 in the event, including six trips to the NCAA Semifinals (1993, 1994, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2008) and two National Championships (1999 & 2008). Penn State is 36-3 in NCAA Tournament matches at Rec Hall.

The winner of the Penn State first and second round NCAA site will remain at Rec Hall for the NCAA Regional Championship on Friday and Saturday, Dec. 12-13. The Penn State site winner will play the site winner from Dayton, Ohio, which features Western Michigan, Dayton, Tennessee Tech and No. 16 seed Tulane. The other Regional Semifinal match will feature the Champaign, Ill., site winner (No. 9 seed Illinois, UW Milwaukee, Cincinnati, Western Kentucky) and the Berkeley, Calif., site winner (New Mexico State, St. Mary's, Siena, No. 8 seed Cal).

The winners from each of the four Regional sites (University Park, Pa., Austin, Texas, Fort Collins, Colo., Seattle, Wash.) will advance to the NCAA National Semifinal, to be held on Thursday, Dec. 18 at the Qwest Center in Omaha, Neb., with the National Championship match slated for Saturday, Dec. 20.

ALL SESSION tickets for the First and Second rounds MUST be purchased at the Bryce Jordan Center Ticket office or by calling 814-865-555 beginning on Monday, Dec. 1 up until 2 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 5. All session tickets are $12 for adults and $8 for youth and students with a valid college or university ID. SINGLE SESSION tickets WILL ONLY be available at Rec Hall on Friday and Saturday and are $7 for adults and $5 for youth and students.

The Nittany Lions captured their sixth consecutive and 12h overall Big Ten title, completing the Big Ten season with a perfect 20-0 record for the second straight year and the fifth time in league history. Penn State also became the first team in NCAA collegiate women's volleyball history to sweep every match of the regular-season. The Nittany Lions have now won an NCAA-record 58 consecutive matches and 97 straight individual sets.

University Park, Pa., Regional Pairings:
December 5-6 at Penn State
Yale (20-5) vs. Ohio (24-7), 3:30 p.m. ET
No. 1 Penn St. (32-0) vs. Long Island (19-11), 6 p.m. ET
Winners play Saturday, Dec. 6 at 4 p.m. ET

December 5-6 at Dayton
Tennessee Tech (19-12) vs. No. 16 Tulane (27-5)
Western Mich. (26-6) vs. Dayton (21-12)

December 5-6 at Illinois
No. 9 Illinois (24-7) vs. Milwaukee (23-8)
Cincinnati (26-6) vs. Western Kentucky (26-9)

December 5-6 Cal
New Mexico St. (25-8) vs. St. Mary's (Cal.) (20-7), 9 p.m. ET
Siena (20-12) vs. No. 8 California (23-6), 11 p.m. ET
Winners play on Saturday, Dec. 6 at 11 p.m. ET