INDIANAPOLIS – The Southwest Minnesota State University volleyball team is ranked No. 3 in the second NCAA Division II Central Region rankings released Wednesday afternoon by the NCAA national committee.
The Mustangs are 22-4 overall and have compiled an in-region record of 20-3.
SMSU is one of seven NSIC schools to appear in the region rankings along with Wayne State (No. 1), Concordia-St. Paul (No. 2), Minnesota Duluth (No. 7), St. Cloud State (No. 8), Winona State (No. 9) and Northern State (No. 10).
The Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) has three teams listed in the rankings with Nebraska-Kearney (No. 4), Central Missouri (No. 5) and Central Oklahoma (No. 6). The third conference in the region, the Great American Conference (GAC), does not have a team ranked.
The top eight teams in the region will advance to the NCAA Central Region Tournament on Nov. 30-Dec. 3. Automatic bids are granted to the winners of the MIAA, GAC and NSIC postseason tournaments, with the remaining five spots awarded on an at-large basis. The NCAA Volleyball selection show will be streamed online on Monday, Nov. 20 at 6:30 p.m. (CT) on NCAA.com.
The championship quarterfinals, semifinals and final match will take place Thursday-Saturday, December 7-10, at the UPMC Events Center in Moon Township, Pennsylvania.
SMSU, ranked No. 6 nationally, and currently in third place in the NSIC standings with a 13-3 record, concludes the regular season this Friday and Saturday with home matches inside the PE Gym. SMSU will take on Winona State on Friday starting at 6 p.m., while on Saturday the Mustangs will host Concordia-St. Paul starting at 3 p.m.
| RK |
School (Conf) |
In-Reg |
DII Rec |
| 1 |
Wayne State (NSIC) |
24-1 |
25-1 |
| 2 |
Concordia-St. Paul (NSIC) |
21-2 |
23-2 |
| 3 |
Southwest Minnesota State (NSIC) |
20-3 |
22-4 |
| 4 |
Nebraska-Kearney (MIAA) |
23-3 |
23-3 |
| 5 |
Central Missouri (MIAA) |
16-4 |
19-7 |
| 6 |
Central Oklahoma (MIAA) |
22-4 |
24-4 |
| 7 |
Minnesota Duluth (NSIC) |
13-7 |
16-8 |
| 8 |
St. Cloud State (NSIC) |
15-5 |
19-6 |
| 9 |
Winona State (NSIC) |
17-6 |
18-7 |
| 10 |
Northern State (NSIC) |
16-8 |
17-8 |
