An action-packed weekend of volleyball reduced the 2024 NCAA Tournament field from 64 teams to a sweet group of 16 teams vying for a spot in the semifinals.
The volleyball world will now turn its focus to Pittsburgh, State College, Lincoln and Louisville, with the top seeded teams all advancing to the next two rounds. Pitt, Penn State, Louisville and Nebraska will look to make the most of their home field advantage and win two more to advance to the Final Four. Let's reset the regions and rate the difficulty of each of the top seeds on a scale of 1 to 10. To advance to the semi-finals.
pit area
1st place Pitt vs. 4th place Oregon
Pitt is no stranger to the Ducks, having played against the Panthers in a game Oregon lost 3-0 in August. Despite the sweep, the Ducks kept the second and third sets close, only dropping 27-25 and 25-23.
In the tournament, Oregon State dominated High Point before dropping the first set. TCU In the second round. However, they played impressive and dominant volleyball and won 3-1 (19-25, 25-21, 25-11, 25-15). Outside hitter Mimi Collier had 19 kills and two aces en route to the victory. As a team, the Ducks had 12 service aces and only 10 service errors, and their service pressure led to long runs that helped them reach a dominant scoreline.
Pitt was in charge of both contests, the first against Morehead State and the second against Oklahoma State. The Sooners gave the Panthers their all in the first set, forcing them to score 28-26, but Pitt ultimately prevailed 3-0 to advance to the Sweet Sixteen.
No. 3 Kentucky vs. No. 7 Missouri
In an all-SEC battle, Missouri State advanced by defeating the second-seeded SMU Mustangs in the second round. The Tigers were led by outside hitter Michael Vernon with 23 kills, and Jordan Iliff had a double-double with 16 kills and 10 digs in addition to four aces. The Tigers' serve was crucial, with 11 aces in the upset victory.
Missouri has a chance to get revenge on Kentucky, which they beat twice this year in conference play. The SEC champion Wildcats will rely on outside hitter Brooklyn DeLay, UK's kill leader, who had double-digit kills in both regular-season wins against the Tigers.
1st seed pit difficulty rating: 4. The Panthers were the No. 1 team for most of the year, but the Sooners defeated them 17-8 in the second round game. This could be the key to an upset for Oregon State, which ranks seventh in the nation in blocks per set. Middle blockers Colby Neal and Onye Ofegbu will need big plays for the Ducks to pull off an upset.
It could be a tough test, but silencing the Panthers' star attackers Olivia Babcock, Torrey Stafford and Valeria Vazquez-Gomez is easier said than done. Pitt will have a tough game in the Sweet 16, but I think it will be easier next time against Kentucky or Missouri. Once you get through Oregon, things should be smooth sailing.
Pennsylvania region
No. 1 Penn State vs. No. 5 Marquette
After defeating Delaware State in the opening match, Penn State faced No. 8 North Carolina State in the second match, dropping a set, but winning 3-1 to advance. Outside hitter Jess Murzik had 21 kills and the Nittany Lions had 13 blocks against the Tar Heels.
Marquette advanced to the Sweet Sixteen with a win over FGCU and a thrilling five-set victory over the Utes at Utah State. The Golden Eagles led 2-0, but Utah came back and stole the fifth set. However, Marquette held the Utes to a .000 batting average in the final set, ending the upset.
2nd place Creighton vs. 3rd place Texas
Both the Blue Jays and Longhorns entered this Sweet Sixteen game with two sweeps in the opening round.
Creighton could sweep. Ole Misseven though the first two sets earned extra points (28-26, 27-25). However, the Blue Jays outscored the Rebels 25-7 in the final set, holding Ole Miss in the negative while hitting .583.
The Blue Jays will be hoping for that level of play against the two-time defending champion Longhorns. Texas got here by beating. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, then No. 6 seed USC. Maddie Skinner had 23 kills in the three-set win against the Trojans, and the team hit .316 overall.
Difficulty rating for No. 1 seed Penn State.: 5. The matchup between Penn State and Marquette looks favorable. Despite Utah's loss, they outscored the Golden Eagles 17-7, and PSU is a physical team with the potential to dominate.
That path should become even more difficult in the Elite Eight matchup. Creighton has a lot of offensive power, with Nora Sis and Eva Martin both averaging over three kills per set. The Blue Jays are the 15th team in the nation in serving aces, averaging 1.91 aces per set. And, of course, Texas has Maddie Skinner and that title pedigree and won't flinch despite the raucous Penn State home crowd.
Louisville area
2nd place Stanford vs. 6th place Florida
Stanford earned an ace in the opening two rounds by defeating Sacramento State and Loyola Marymount. Outside hitter Ella Rubin had 15 kills in each match, but the Cardinal's serve was dangerous in both matches, with 16 aces in the two games.
Meanwhile, Florida won north carolina He then pulled off an upset victory in a five-set thriller. kansas jayhawks. In an instant classic, Florida star Kennedy Martin had 33 kills for the Gators, marking the fifth time this year she has reached that mark.
1st place Louisville vs. 4th place Purdue
Louisville faced Chicago State in the first round and was cornered by Northern Iowa in the second round. After falling behind 2-1 in the match, the Cardinals managed to defeat the Panthers, winning the final two sets 25-13 and then 22-20, another instant classic. The Cardinals had 25 blocks in the game, and Anna DeVere and Charity Looper each had 19 kills.
Purdue defeated the No. 5 seed with two consecutive wins over Western Michigan and Loyola Chicago. BYU. Purdue's star outside hitter Ava Hudson is peaking at the perfect time, hitting .563 with 20 kills in the last win against Loyola.
Difficulty rating for No. 1 seed Louisville: 9. Perhaps this is also due to the fact that Louisville looked shaky in the second round, but this is the region the No. 1 seed is most likely to fall short.
The Cardinal just defeated Louisville before the tournament started, but not clinching the No. 1 overall seed could be even more motivating. Stanford has momentum in this win with four players reaching double-digit kills. Don't count out Florida or Kennedy Martin, who is becoming a star in the sport. The two games against Purdue and Hudson were very impressive. All three of these teams look like they could go head-to-head against the Cardinals. This should be a box office hit, but it could be a horror movie for Louisville fans.
nebraska region
No. 2 Wisconsin vs. No. 6 Texas A&M
Wisconsin defeated Fairfield 3-0. Georgia Tech The 3-1 win set up a rematch with the Texas A&M Aggies, whom the Badgers defeated 3-0 in September. Wisconsin, the second-best blocking team in the country, posted 14 blocks to help fight back against the Yellow Jackets and advance to the Sweet Sixteen. Big Ten Player of the Year Sarah Franklin had 20 kills in the game, having a better season than last year when she won National Player of the Year.
Meanwhile, the Aggies won both games 3-1, first coming off a come-from-behind victory over Colorado State. arizona. In that second round match, Logan Lednicki had an impressive 27 kills, 11 digs, and 6 blocks. She has over 20 kills in both tournament matches this season.
1st place Nebraska vs. 5th place Dayton
Nebraska won its first two games in straight sets against Florida A&M and Miami (Fla.). The Huskers held the Hurricanes to a .058 batting average in the second round and held the Rattlers to a -.043 batting average in the opening game. In fact, the Huskers didn't even get a full spin in the first set, winning 25-3.
After sweeping Wofford in the first round, the Dayton Flyers won the first round. baylor bears Moving on to Lincoln in a 5-set thriller. In the win, Lexi Almodovar had 34 kills against the Bears, and two other Flyers, Liana Sarkisian and Brooke Smith, also reached double digits.
Difficulty rating for No. 1 seed Nebraska: 3. The Huskers bounced back from a somewhat disappointing end to the season in which they fell short of winning the Big Ten title outright due to a loss to Penn State. It must be difficult to have such high standards. Dayton is brave and Almodovar is great, but Nebraska has too many weapons for the opener.
If this were about rating potential storylines, I would give it a 10 for the possibility of another edition of Wisconsin vs. Nebraska. However, the Huskers defeated the Badgers twice this year without dropping a set. The second matchup in Lincoln was a close game, with Wisconsin missing its top two defensive players due to injuries, but I didn't necessarily feel any different. That doesn't mean I'm going to discount A&M. A&M's outside hitters will give UW a hard time as well.
