BATON ROUGE — For the second straight year, the 15th-ranked LSU volleyball qualified for the NCAA Tournament when the 64-team field was announced on ESPNews on Sunday afternoon.
The Tigers (26-5) earned an at-large bid after winning their second straight Southeastern Conference Western Division Championship. LSU will face California out of the Pac-10 in the first round on Friday at 8 p.m. (CST) as part of the San Luis Obispo, Calif., Regional.
No. 15 national seed Cal Poly, the automatic qualifier from the Big West Conference, will take on Michigan, an at-large selection out of the Big Ten, in the first match on Friday. If the Tigers advance past California, they will take on the winner of the Cal Poly-Michigan match on Saturday at 9 p.m. (CST).
The Regional Finals for LSU’s bracket will be held in Austin, Texas, home of No. 7 national seed Texas. The NCAA Final Four will be held in Omaha, Neb.
“Obviously we are very excited to be in the field,” said LSU head coach Fran Flory. “We are not surprised to be in the Austin Regional. I think we have a favorable situation. It will be a nice challenge that this team will embrace.”
The Tigers are making their second-straight trip to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since making four consecutive appearances from 1989-1992. Overall, LSU is making its eighth appearance in the NCAA Tournament and has posted a 10-7 record. The Tigers are one of three teams in the SEC to advance to the NCAA Final Four, making appearances in both 1990 and 1991.
LSU is 11-5 this season against teams in the NCAA Tournament, including a three-game sweep of St. John’s last weekend. The Tigers have not played anyone in their regional bracket this season. LSU is 0-1 all-time against California, falling 0-2 in the Mikasa National Invitational on Nov. 4, 1983. The Tigers are also 1-4 against Cal Poly, but the pair has not met since 1990, and 1-2 all-time against Michigan, with the last meeting in 1998.
In addition to LSU, six other SEC teams earned bids to the NCAA Tournament. Along with LSU, SEC Champion Florida, Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Ole Miss and Tennessee were chosen to participate in the postseason tournament. Ole Miss is one of five teams making their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament in school history.
The seven teams selected from the SEC are a record for the conference, besting the previous high of six set last season. In addition, the SEC tied the Pac-10 and the Big Ten for the most teams in the tournament this season, followed by the Big 12 with six.
2006 NCAA Volleyball Tournament Pairings
at Lincoln, Neb.
(1) Nebraska vs. American
Winthrop vs. Northern Iowa
at Knoxville, Tenn.
(16) San Diego vs. Jacksonville State
Tennessee vs. Duke
at Albany, N.Y.
(8) Minnesota vs. Siena
St. John’s vs. Albany
at Gainesville, Fla.
(9) Florida vs. Florida A&M
Arizona State vs. College of Charleston
at Los Angeles, Calif.
(5) Southern California vs. Ole Miss
UC-Santa Barbara vs. BYU
at Long Beach, Calif.
(12) Hawai’i vs. Oregon
Pepperdine vs. Long Beach
at Fayetteville, Ark.
(13) Oklahoma vs. Oral Roberts
Arkansas vs. Missouri State
at Los Angeles, Calif.
(4) UCLA vs. UAB
Michigan State vs. Utah
at State College, Pa.
(3) Penn State vs. Long Island
Cornell vs. Hofstra
at West Lafayette, Ind.
(14) Purdue vs. St. Louis
Kentucky vs. Ohio
at Bolder, Colo.
(11) Washington vs. Colorado State
Colorado vs. New Mexico State
at Louisville, Ky.
(6) Ohio State vs. Belmont
Middle Tennessee vs. Louisville
at Austin, Texas
(7) Texas vs. Prairie View A&M
Stephen F. Austin vs. Alabama
at Madison, Wisc.
(10) Wisconsin vs. Notre Dame
Iowa State vs. UW-Milwaukee
at San Luis Obispo, Calif.
(15) Cal Poly vs. Michigan
LSU vs. California
at Palo Alto, Calif.
(2) Stanford vs. Sacramento State
Missouri vs. Santa Clara
LSU IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
Overall Record: 10-7 (.588)
Best Finish: Final Four (1990 & 1991)
1986
FIRST ROUND – BATON ROUGE, LA.
defeated Arizona 15-12, 5-15, 15-12, 12-15, 15-9
SOUTH REGIONAL – AUSTIN, TEXAS
defeated Texas-Arlington 15-7, 15-5, 15-9
lost to Texas 3-15, 11-15, 13-15
1987
FIRST ROUND – GAINESVILLE, FLA.
lost to Florida 10-15, 15-7, 10-15, 15-10, 10-15
1989
FIRST ROUND – BATON ROUGE, LA.
defeated Houston 13-15, 15-12, 8-15, 15-7, 15-3
SOUTH REGIONAL – AUSTIN, TEXAS
lost to Texas-Arlington 15-13, 15-11, 11-15, 13-15, 5-15
1990
FIRST ROUND – BATON ROUGE, LA.
defeated Louisville 15-9, 15-1, 15-7
SOUTH REGIONAL – AUSTIN, TEXAS
defeated Texas Tech 15-11, 15-12, 15-5
defeated Texas 8-15, 4-15, 15-10, 15-11, 17-15
FINAL FOUR – COLLEGE PARK, MD.
lost to UCLA 13-15, 10-15, 6-15
1991
FIRST ROUND – BATON ROUGE, LA.
defeated Houston 15-5, 15-5, 16-14
SOUTH REGIONAL – BATON ROUGE, LA.
defeated Texas Tech 15-6, 15-7, 15-10
defeated Florida 15-10, 15-10, 12-15, 15-13
FINAL FOUR – LOS ANGELES, CALIF.
lost to Long Beach State 13-15, 15-6, 10-15, 13-15
1992
FIRST ROUND – LUBBOCK, TEXAS
defeated Texas Tech 15-7, 15-8, 15-5
SOUTH REGIONAL – GAINESVILLE, FLA.
lost to Texas 9-15, 15-13, 12-15, 4-15
2005
FIRST ROUND – AUSTIN, TEXAS
lost to Texas, 19-30, 28-30, 26-30