@CanesVB Earns NCAA Tournament At-Large Bid
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The University of Miami volleyball team is headed to the NCAA Tournament for the sixth straight year.
The Hurricanes (21-8, 14-4 ACC) earned one of the 64 spots in the 2014 NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball field and will be one of four teams participating in the Gainesville portion of the Ames Regional, joining No. 8 Florida, UCF and Alabama State.
“I’m extremely excited for this group with so many new players,” head coach Jose “Keno” Gandara said. “To see where we started off and the improvement we made with this in mind; our goal was always to make the tournament and hopefully make a run in the tournament. It’s exciting to see that happening. I felt really good coming into this week and feel we deserve to be in the tournament. I am extremely happy for the players, staff and the university.”
Miami, who finished tied for third in the ACC, will face UCF at 4:30 p.m. on December 5 in their first round match of the 2014 NCAA Tournament. The winner of that match advances to face the winner of No. 8 Florida and Alabama State.
“Being able to experience the NCAA tournament the last four years has been an awesome experience,” senior Emani Sims said. “I’m so glad our new comers are experiencing it for the first time, as well. Going up against new competition is always exciting and it let’s us work through challenges as a team in order to become better.”
The Hurricanes are part of a 16-team bracket that features No. 1 overall seed Stanford, No. 8 Florida, No. 9 Illinois and No. 16 Kansas. Miami has now earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year under Gandara and the seventh time in program history.
“From my experience, I think one of the keys to doing well is balance,” Gandara said. “We need to balance our excitement because while we are deserving of a spot in the tournament, we still have business to take care of.”
The Canes, who are 3-6 all-time in the NCAA Tournament, will face UCF (25-7, 18-2 AAC) in the opening round. Miami is 10-5 all-time against UCF, last facing the Knights in 2003. The Hurricanes have played against UCF twice since volleyball returned to Miami in 2001, winning both matches.
Miami’s best postseason run came in 2002 when the Hurricanes reached the Sweet 16 before falling to Nebraska. Last season, the Hurricanes dropped their first round match against Oregon in three sets. Two years ago, the Canes traveled to Gainesville for their first round match of the 2012 NCAA Tournament.
The Hurricanes’ 21 wins in 2014 are the most in a single-season under head coach Jose “Keno” Gandara. The Canes also achieved its first 20-win season under Gandara.
Tickets for the 2014 NCAA Women’s Volleyball First and Second Rounds are available here.
For all the latest information on Miami Hurricanes volleyball, follow the official Twitter feed, @CanesVB, or “Like Us” on Facebook at facebook.com/UMVolleyball. The program is also on Instagram.
