The NCAA News - News and Features

March 3, 1997

I volleyball focuses on championship sites, bracket issues

Future championship site selection and administration of a newly expanded 56-team bracket for 1997 dominated the NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Committee's annual meeting February 10-13 in San Antonio.

The committee will recommend to the NCAA Executive Committee that Richmond, Virginia, and San Diego be the sites for the 2000 and 2001 championships, respectively. Virginia Commonwealth University would host the 2000 championship while San Diego State University would host the 2001 event.

Although both locales have hosted NCAA championships, neither has hosted the Division I Women's Volleyball Championship before.

"The committee believes it is important to consider geographical rotation when looking at championship sites," said Marcia L. Saneholtz, senior associate athletics director at Washington State University and chair of the committee. "Richmond and San Diego achieve the desired balance in our rotational schedule.

"The committee also looks at the ability of the school and the community to host a first-class championship. Richmond impressed us with its track record, having hosted other NCAA events, and San Diego State, under the leadership of its new athletics director (Richard M. Bay), impressed us with its commitment."

This year's championship will be at Washington State University, also a first-time host. Two repeat sites, the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and the University of Hawaii, Manoa, will host the 1998 and 1999 championships.

For the 1997 championship, the committee determined the following 26 conferences will receive automatic qualification: America East; the Atlantic Coast, Atlantic 10, Big East, Big Sky, Big South, Big Ten, Big Twelve, Big West, Metro Atlantic Athletic, Mid-American, Mid-Continent, Midwestern Collegiate, Missouri Valley, Ohio Valley, Pacific-10, Southeastern, Southern, Southland, Sun Belt, Trans America Athletic, Western Athletic and West Coast Conferences; the Colonial Athletic Association; Conference USA; and the Ivy Group.

In addition, four conferences will compete in play-ins, with the Patriot League hosting the Northeast Conference and the Southwestern Athletic Conference hosting the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.

As for the expanded bracket for 1997, the committee recommended that the top 16 teams be seeded. The top eight seeds will compete in three-team combined first and second rounds while seeds No. 9 through 16 will compete in four-team combined first and second rounds.

The committee also established two policies regarding preliminary-round hosts. The committee stipulated that an institution may not host regional competition for more than two consecutive years unless no other regional site is available that meets hosting requirements.

In addition, institutions may host at an off-campus facility, provided that it is within 30 miles of the main campus and prior approval has been obtained from the committee. Institutions need not have played a regular-season match at the off-campus facility.

Tape-exchange policy

In other actions, the committee developed a tape-exchange policy under which coaches from participating institutions must contact each first-round and potential second-round opponent to determine the match tapes that will be exchanged. Each institution must send a videotape copy of the selected match to its first-round opponent and potential second-round opponents. Institutions with first-round byes must forward a tape to each of its possible second-round opponents.

Each second-round winner must send its regional semifinal opponent a videotape and statistics sheet of the second-round match. Each regional winners must send a videotape and stat sheet of the regional championship match to its semifinal opponent before the championship semifinals.

At all rounds of competition, institutions will be able to videotape all matches played (including opponents) at their respective sites.

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