Team Tampa Bay's Take with Joey Johnston - The Road to Tampa Bay is Set

By Joey Johnston

Now there’s a clear-cut map for the Road to Tampa Bay.

When the 64-team bracket for the NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball Championship was revealed Sunday night — a tournament that ultimately will be whittled to the final four squads headed to downtown Tampa’s Amalie Arena on Dec. 14-17 — there were no huge surprises at the top.

The Nebraska Cornhuskers (28-1) earned the tournament’s overall No. 1 seed for the first time since 2016. The Cornhuskers have reached the national semifinals in five of the past eight seasons, including NCAA titles in 2015 and 2017.

Nebraska was swept at Big Ten Conference rival Wisconsin on Nov. 24 for its only defeat, but the Cornhuskers have won 84 of their 102 sets this season.

The other top national seeds, which can earn hosting rights for the Sweet 16 regionals by winning the opening two rounds this weekend, included the No. 2 Stanford Cardinal (26-3), the No. 3 Wisconsin Badgers (26-3) and the No. 4 Pittsburgh Panthers (25-4).

“A lot goes into it and it’s a big grind (to determine the bracket), but it’s exciting and it’s a really exciting time for volleyball,’’ said NCAA women’s volleyball committee chair Holly Strauss-O’Brien, the former head coach at UConn, during an interview with ESPN. “The parity in college volleyball has been unbelievable, which is going to make for a really exciting and unpredictable tournament.’’

Tampa Bay will be the final destination for a season that already has been historic. Nebraska volleyball set a world record for women’s athletics by drawing 92,003 fans to its Aug. 30 match, held at the school’s football stadium. Meanwhile, six Division I volleyball matches drew at least 10,000 fans, while 77 schools averaged at least 1,000 fans per match (and 14 of those schools averaged at least 3,000 fans).

When the final four teams reach Amalie Arena, in the showcase event hosted by the Tampa Bay Sports Commission and the University of South Florida, the championship match will be broadcast by ABC-TV for the first time.

The state of Florida has four representatives in the 64-team field — the Florida Gators (18-9), Florida State Seminoles (23-9), Florida Gulf Coast Eagles (26-6) and Miami Hurricanes (17-11).

Florida opens with FGCU in Gainesville and the injury-riddled Gators are projected to a region semifinal meeting with the powerful Cornhuskers.

FSU, the ACC co-champions, has a challenging first-round match against the dynamic TCU Horned Frogs (16-14) and a potential second-rounder against home-standing Arkansas (25-5).

Miami, which boasts a pair of victories against Georgia Tech, was one of the last at-large teams in the field and faces Northern Iowa (26-6), winners of its last 21 matches, at Madison, Wisc. Miami faces a potential second-rounder against Wisconsin.

The SEC has a tournament-best eight teams in the NCAA field, followed by the Big 12 (seven), ACC (five), Big Ten (five), Pac-12 (five) and Sun Belt (four). Four other conferences — the Big East, Big West, Mountain West and WAC — had two teams each.

Here’s a closer look at each of the regional fields:

NEBRASKA REGIONAL

Top Regional Seeds — 1. Nebraska (28-1), 2. Kentucky (19-7), 3. Arkansas (25-5), 4. Florida (18-9).

What To Watch — It would be a shocker if the Cornhuskers fall short of a Tampa trip. Nebraska has nine victories against teams in the RPI top 25, so it is not only ultra-talented, but ultra-seasoned against great competition. Junior libero Lexi Rodriguez, a returning second-team All-American, is the catalyst behind Nebraska’s unrelenting defense, which holds opponents to a .141 hitting percentage (third nationally after ranking first last season at .128). The Cornhuskers have excellent freshmen in libero Laney Choboy and outside hitter Harper Murray. Can we make a case for someone to upset Nebraska? The challengers have a Southern flair. Kentucky, which won its seventh straight SEC title, and conference counterpart Arkansas are worthy competitors. Florida has been haunted by a season-ending injury to setter Alexis Stucky, but the Gators have young talent and a resourcefully experienced coach in Mary Wise. UF’s second-round opponent could be Georgia Tech, coached by USF Hall of Famer Michelle Collier, a dangerous No. 5 regional seed that could have easily been selected as an early-round host.

STANFORD REGIONAL

Top Regional Seeds — No. 1 Stanford (26-3), No. 2 Texas (22-4), No. 3 Tennessee (24-4), No. 4 BYU (24-6).

What To Watch — Stanford, shooting for its 10th NCAA volleyball title, went 19-1 in the Pac-12 and has a complete team. The Cardinal is paced by setter Kami Miner, a returning first-team All-American, and a potent offense (nation-leading .316 hitting percentage). But the defending national champion Texas Longhorns, winners of seven consecutive Big 12 Conference titles, could be waiting in the region final. The Longhorns lost the national player of the year in Logan Eggleston, but feature ample returning firepower with Madisen Skinner (Big 12 leader in kills per set with 4.64) and Asjia O’Neal (second nationally in blocks per set with 1.59). Texas could also be faced with a rip-roaring region semifinal against the Tennessee Volunteers, who join Stanford as the only team to rank in the national top five in hitting percentage, kills per set and assists per set. The Vols feature Morgahn Fingall, who was second in SEC kills per set (4.24).

WISCONSIN REGIONAL

Top Regional Seeds — No. 1 Wisconsin (26-3), No. 2 Oregon (26-5), No. 3 Purdue (21-8), No. 4 Kansas (23-5).

What To Watch — The Badgers began 18-0, then had a mini-slump in the late season, losing three matches in an eight-match span. But they roared through the final three, including a sweep of Nebraska. Wisconsin is one of the nation’s top blocking teams (nation-leading 3.01 blocks per set and an opposing hitting percentage of .147, which ranks sixth nationally). The Badgers feature 6-foot-4 senior Sarah Franklin, a native of Lake Worth and one of Florida’s best prep players in recent years. Don’t sleep on Wisconsin’s bracket, though. It’s potentially treacherous. Oregon has powerful offensive weapons. Purdue defeated Wisconsin during the regular season. And the Penn State Nittany Lions, in the uncharacteristic position of No. 5 regional seed, are the ultimate dangerous floater after an 0-2 start and a three-match losing streak in early November.

PITTSBURGH REGIONAL

Top Regional Seeds — No. 1 Pittsburgh (25-4), No. 2 Louisville (24-4), No. 3 Creighton (27-4), No. 4 Washington State (24-7).

What To Watch — Strauss-O’Brien said it was a razor-thin decision to award Pittsburgh a top-four national seed over Louisville, its ACC rival and last season’s national runner-up. But even though Louisville had the better RPI (3 to 4) and the teams split their regular-season matches, the Panthers got the nod because it had more wins against common opponents (17 to 15) and more wins against the RPI top 50 teams (11-4 vs. 9-4). “We didn’t take that decision lightly,’’ Strauss-O’Brien said. “Fortunately, they’re in the same conference (so there was a better basis of comparison).’’ If it’s a Pittsburgh-Louisville region final, expect ferocious competition. The Panthers have Rachel Fairbanks, the ACC’s best setter and a third-team All-American last season. The Cardinals feature Elena Scott, the ACC’s best libero and a returning second-team All-American.