The Divisions I, II and III Women's Volleyball Committees discussed current and future championship formats during their annual meetings last month.

The Division I group began preparing for the first predetermined regional sites in tournament history. The Division I Championships/Competition Cabinet approved the University of Florida; the University of Hawaii, Manoa; Long Beach State University; and the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, as regional sites for the 2003 Division I Women's Volleyball Championship.

Lisa Love, senior associate athletics director at the University of Southern California, and chair of the committee, said growing the sport and giving regional hosts more time to prepare for the competitions are the primary benefits.

"The committee believes that moving to predetermined regional sites (as opposed to the old three-day-notice format) will facilitate that goal by putting these four highly competitive tournaments in front of larger audiences," she said. "Florida, Hawaii, Long Beach State and Nebraska have a history of successful hosting and boast great potential in raising the attendance standards."

Maximizing television coverage is another element in ensuring successful regional tournaments. The 2002 regional finals were televised live for the first time. The committee looks to continue strategizing and strengthening its relationship with ESPN.

To accommodate the change in format, the committee is developing a new timeline to review and select regional host bids for 2004 and 2005. Bid packets will be available in June and will be due August 1. The committee will then aim to have the recommendations approved at the September 2003 cabinet meeting.

Before each round of the tournament, the host will conduct a conference call on Monday by 2 p.m. local time for all participating administrators to give them the most up-to-date tournament information.

Finally, to better understand how teams are selected to the tournament, the committee will work with the American Volleyball Coaches Association to develop a presentation on the selection process. The committee hopes to provide coaches with a better understanding of the selection criteria and what they can do to improve their teams' selection chances.

Divisions II and III actions

In Division II, the committee explored the possibility of bracket expansion from 48 to 56 teams in 2004 and from 56 to 64 teams in 2006. Based on funding projections for different NCAA sports, the Division II Championships Committee asked the committee to develop a plan for the expansion and submit it back to the championships committee.

If the expansion to 56 teams occurs, the volleyball committee would recommend that the bracket retain the same format, but that the No. 1-seeded team in each region receive a bye. The recommendation will be forwarded to the Championships Committee in June.

Regional alignment would be affected by expansion because some Division II institutions are reclassifying. The committee will revisit the alignment issue at its 2004 meeting when more is known about the bracket expansion.

To ensure that the championship retains and attracts the best officials, the committee will recommend an increase in officials' fees. The action will go forward in September to coincide with the two-year budget cycle and would not be implemented until the 2004 championship.

Also, the committee noted that the Great Northwest Conference will receive automatic qualification to the 2003 championship. In addition, the group set game times for the 2003 championship -- 5 and 7:30 p.m. for the semifinals, and 7 p.m. for the championship match.

The Division III committee also reviewed the possibility of bracket expansion from 48 to 64 teams in 2005. The committee developed a plan for a 64-team field that would include sending eight teams to the finals using a revised format and date formula. Also, the committee requested the ability to move to a predetermined finals site in 2004. The recommendations will be forwarded to the Division III Championships Committee in June.

In other actions, the volleyball committee approved the placement of all tournament materials, including the manual, bracket and participant information, on the NCAA Web site. These items would no longer be mailed. In the future, the completed bracket will be posted on the Web site immediately after the selections call so that teams can get the information as soon as possible. The committee will still call teams that make the tournament.

Finally, the committee created a new score-reporting form and recommended to increase officials' fees for the 2004 championship.