November 30, 2003
The Texas A&M volleyball team (21-9) received its 11th consecutive at-large berth to the NCAA Championship and has been selected to host first and second-round matches, the NCAA selection committee announced Sunday.
"We were definitely excited when we saw College Station,Texas, up on the board," A&M coach Laurie Corbelli said following the selection show. "We've been hoping and hoping knowing that we were a bubble team (to host). Being able to complete our season third in the conference, one of the toughest in the country, and the trek that we've had the last five or six matches has been difficult. We've still managed to keep afloat and stay third so the excitement is there, and being at G. Rollie means so much to becoming victorious. We are hoping to get a great crowd out their as we go for the Sweet Sixteen and the Elite Eight."
The Aggies, who are the No. 16 seed in the 64-team field, face Nicholls State (18-14) in the first round on Friday at 7 p.m. (CST) at G. Rollie White Coliseum. The Colonels received an automatic bid and are making their first NCAA tournament appearance after winning the Southland Conference tournament.
Arizona (17-14), an at-large selection from the Pacific-10 Conference, and Wisconsin (21-10), an at-large selection representing the Big Ten Conference, square off in the other first round match at 5 p.m. Friday at G. Rollie White Coliseum.
The two winners meet Saturday at 7 p.m., with the winner advancing to the regional to be hosted by Nebraska in Lincoln, Dec. 12-13.
Ticket information will be announced as soon as the information becomes available.
A&M, which ended the regular season with a three-game sweep over Iowa State to tie Colorado and Kansas for third place in the Big 12 Conference with a 13-7 mark, is making its 15th overall NCAA appearance. Last year, A&M advanced to the NCAA second round before being eliminated by No. 1 seed and eventual national champion Southern California.
Texas A&M NCAA Tournament Notes: A&M is making its 11th consecutive appearance in the NCAA tournament and its 15th overall appearance (1981, '82, '85, '86, '93, '94, '95, '96, '97, '98,' 99, '00, '01, '02 and '03) since the inception of the tournament in 1981...The Aggies, who have never lost an NCAA first-round match under 11th-year head coach Laurie Corbelli, sport a 17-14 (.548) all-time record in the NCAA tournament, including a 15-10 (.600) during Corbelli's A&M tenure...Last year A&M was sent to Los Angeles where the Aggies defeated 23rd-ranked Utah, 3-0, in the first round and then fell to host and No. 1-seed USC, who went on to capture the national championship. It was the second consecutive year the Aggies were eliminated by the eventual national champion, having fallen to Stanford in 2002...This is the 10th year A&M has hosted an NCAA tournament match, including the fifth time with Corbelli as coach...The home court has proven favorable to the Aggies, who are 12-0 all-time in NCAA matches played at G. Rollie White Coliseum...The Big 12 Conference is represented by six teams in the tournament field: No. 6 seed Kansas State, No. 9 seed Nebraska, No. 16 seed Texas A&M, Colorado, Kansas, which is making its first trip to the NCAAs, and Missouri...Kansas State captured its first conference title in the 30-year history of the program to earned the Big 12's automatic bid...The Aggies are 8-8 against the tournament field.
NCAA Tournament Notes: This is the sixth year the tournament has included 64 teams...Thirty-one conferences were awarded automatic qualification, and the remaining 33 slots were filled with at-large selections to complete the bracket...The top 16 teams were seeded nationally...Defending national champion USC is the No. 1 seed...Sixteen first-and second-round matches will be played Dec 4-7 on the campuses of participating institutions...Winners will advance to four regional tournaments to be hosted by Florida, Hawaii, Long Beach State and Nebraska, Dec. 11-14. This is the first year the regional sites have been predetermined...The four regional winners will meet at the Final Four, which is being hosted by the Big 12. The semifinal matches will be played Dec. 18 at Reunion Arena in Dallas, with the first match slated to begin at 6:30 p.m. The championship match will be contested Dec. 20 at 2:30 p.m. also at Reunion Arena...Tickets are available at all TicketMaster locations and at www.TicketMaster.com...For complete tournament bracket and information, visit the NCAA official Website at www.NCAAsports.com.