The East Carolina volleyball team will experience postseason play for the second-straight year as it has earned an at large bid to the 2024 National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC) according to an announcement by the event organizers Sunday night.
The Pirates are hosting the first and Super 16 rounds of the tournament for the second time in as many seasons as UConn, Mercer and Winthrop are slated to join ECU inside Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum Thursday and Friday (Dec. 5-6). The Huskies and Bears kick things off Friday at 3 p.m. while the Pirates and Eagles will face off at 6 p.m. in the other first round match. The winners will meet Saturday at 6 p.m. for the right to advance to the Great 8.
East Carolina entertained Georgia Southern, The Citadel and Winthrop in Greenville in the 2023 NIVC, knocking off the Bulldogs in three sets before falling to the Eagles in a 3-0 decision the next day.
ECU (18-9 overall) slotted third in the American Athletic Conference standings this season with an 11-5 league record. It marked the highest-ever finish for the Pirates in AAC play while tying for the best in any conference in program history. East Carolina also registered double-digit victories for the second consecutive season and logged 10 or more league wins in two-straight campaigns for the first time after producing an 11-8 American Conference record in 2023. Fran McBride (First Team), Angeles Alderete (Second Team) and Taryn Gilreath (All-Freshman Team) each earned postseason accolades from the league in November.
UConn (24-7 overall) put together a 12-6 record in the Big East Conference, good for third place. The Huskies won their first 12 matches of the season before suffering a sweep at the hands of Marquette to open league play. UConn lost to Villanova in the quarterfinals of the conference tournament.
Mercer (26-6 overall) claimed the Southern Conference regular season title with a 14-2 mark in league contests. The Bears reached the conference tournament championship match, falling to Wofford in five sets. Mercer faced one AAC opponent during the year, dropping a four setter to Florida Atlantic back on Sept. 20 in Boca Raton.
Winthrop (16-10 overall) also came within a whisker of reaching the NCAA Tournament, losing in five sets to Big South Conference Tournament host High Point in five sets. The Eagles, who were second in the regular season standings, own a road victory over Virginia Tech which they procured during their opening weekend of play.
The NIVC is an annual tournament involving some of the nation’s top women’s Division I Volleyball teams. All games, including the semifinals and championship, are hosted by participating schools. Every round is single elimination.
2024 NIVC First Round and Super 16
Dec. 5-6 at East Carolina (Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum)
December 5th
3:00 p.m. – UConn vs. Mercer
6:00 p.m. – Winthrop at East Carolina
December 6th
6:00 p.m. – First round winners
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