INDIANAPOLIS – The Southwest Minnesota State University volleyball team is ranked No. 7 in the second NCAA Division II Central Region rankings released Wednesday afternoon by the NCAA national committee.
 
The Mustangs are 21-4 overall and have compiled an in-region record of 18-4. Only matches versus Division II opponents are counted for the NCAA region rankings.
 
SMSU is one of five NSIC schools to appear in the region rankings along with St. Cloud State (No. 1), Concordia-St. Paul (No. 2), Wayne State (No. 8) and Northern State (No. 9).
 
The Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) also has five teams listed with Nebraska-Kearney (No. 3), Missouri Western (No. 4), Central Oklahoma (No. 5), Washburn (No. 6) and Emporia State (No. 10). The third conference in the region, the Great American Conference (GAC), does not have a team ranked.  
 
The final region ranking will be released on Nov. 20. 
 
The top eight teams in the region will advance to the NCAA Central Region Tournament on Dec. 5-7 or Dec. 6-8. 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 National Championships will take place on Dec. 12-14, at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D. 
 
The NCAA Volleyball selection show will air online on Monday, Nov. 25, at 6:30 p.m. (CST) on NCAA.com.
 
SMSU, ranked No. 16 nationally, concludes the regular season this weekend with two road matches. SMSU will play at MSU Moorhead on Friday at 6 p.m. before closing at Northern State on Saturday starting at 3 p.m.
 

CENTRAL	REGION RANKINGS	In-Region	Overall
1	St. Cloud State	19-1	23-2
2	Concordia-St.Paul	15-2	19-5
3	Nebraska-Kearney	23-1	26-1
4	Missouri Western	18-5	21-5
5	Central Oklahoma	21-2	25-2
6	Washburn	18-4	19-5
7	Southwest Minnesota State	18-4	21-4
8	Wayne State (Nebraska)	14-6	20-6
9	Northern State	15-5	19-5
10	Emporia State	16-7	16-8