Carson Park | UW-Eau Claire Blugolds
Carson Park | UW-Eau Claire Blugolds
The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire volleyball team has secured an at-large berth in the NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball Championship for the fifth time in six seasons. The Blugolds will compete against the University of Northwestern (Minn.) in a first-round match on November 21, hosted by UW-Whitewater.
Setter Ella Kiebel expressed her enthusiasm: "I'm super excited to be playing, and I know the whole team is." She added that facing tough competition throughout the season prepared them for this challenge.
UW-Eau Claire enters the tournament with a 20-8 record, while their opponents, the Eagles, hold a 24-8 record and are champions of the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference. The teams previously met on October 9, with UW-Eau Claire emerging victorious.
Head Coach Kim Wudi commented on returning to familiar territory: "Excited to go to a familiar gym... And obviously to play Northwestern, I have a tremendous amount of respect for their program." She noted that Northwestern would present a different challenge this time.
UW-Whitewater will also host other regional matches including Ohio Wesleyan versus UW-Whitewater, UW-Platteville against Edgewood, and WashU taking on Saint Benedict. Winners from these matches will advance further in the tournament.
In their last NCAA appearance in 2022, the Blugolds were defeated by Gustavus Adolphus College in the first round. Since 2018, they have maintained a strong NCAA Tournament record of 10 wins and three losses.
For updates on their progress this season, fans can follow along at Blugolds.com or through social media platforms like Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
The team celebrated their selection at The Sonnentag facility as captured by Zach Jacobson from UWEC Photography.
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