NAIA Volleyball Opening Round Preview
FREMONT, Neb. – No. 20 Midland University will host (RV) Dakota State University in the 2024 NAIA Women's Volleyball National Championship Opening Round on Saturday. The Warriors will battle the Trojans inside the Wikert Event Center on November 23, beginning at 1:00 p.m.
Midland earned an at-large berth following a 17-11 season, finishing third in the always-competitive Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC). In the conference postseason tournament, they reached the GPAC Semifinal before falling to the second-seeded and No. 2-ranked Concordia. This will be the Warriors' 11th appearance in the tournament in the last 12 seasons, and their 5th straight.
Dakota State earned an at-large bid after finishing third in the North Star Athletic Association (NSAA) and reaching the postseason championship. The Trojans fell in the title match to No. 5 Bellevue and have an 18-11 overall record. This is the third appearance for Dakota State in the national tournament having made the field in 2019 and 2021.
Saturday's match is one of 24 opening-round contests at campus locations nationwide. Winners of those matches will advance to the Tyson Events Center in Sioux City, Iowa for pool play beginning on Wednesday, December 4. The tournament runs through Tuesday, December 10 when the 2024 NAIA Women's Volleyball National Champion will be crowned.
The national office will announce the 24-team national championship final site pool match-ups on Sunday, November 24 by the national office at 1:00 p.m.
FAN INFORMATION
Tickets to watch the 1:00 p.m. match in person can be purchased in advance online [LINK] or at the door on the day of the match. Prices are $10.00 for adults and $5.00 for students. Doors open at 12:00 p.m. Season passes are not valid for the postseason match.
For fans unable to attend, a live stream of the match will be available on the GPAC Network [LINK]. Rich Ray, the Voice of the Warriors, will be on the call.
Live statistics of the Midland-Dakota State match, and all of the NAIA Opening Round matches, can be found here [LINK]. More information about the Warriors and Trojans, including rosters and statistics, can be found in the game notes [LINK].