NCAA Division I women's volleyball tournament explained

Current Season:	2023 NCAA Division I women's volleyball tournament
Pixels:	125px
Sport:	Volleyball
Founded:	1981
Teams:	64
Champion:	Texas (4)
Tv:	ABC
Website:	NCAA.com
Most Champs:	Stanford (9)

The NCAA Division I women's volleyball tournament is an annual event that leads to the championship in women's volleyball from teams in Division I contested by the NCAA each winter since 1981. Texas won the most recent tournament, defeating Nebraska 3–0 at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida.

History

From 1970 through 1980, before the NCAA governed women's collegiate athletics, the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women conducted the women's collegiate volleyball championships.

Volleyball was one of twelve women's sports added to the NCAA championship program for the 1981–82 school year, as the NCAA engaged in battle with the AIAW for sole governance of women's collegiate sports. The AIAW continued to conduct its established championship program in the same twelve (and other) sports; however, after a year of dual women's championships, the NCAA won the fight and assumed the AIAW's authority and membership.

The first NCAA championship tournament was held in 1981, with 20 schools competing for the title. The tournament expanded gradually, moving to 28 teams in 1982, 32 in 1986, 48 in 1993, 56 in 1997, and finally to its current size of 64 in 1998.^[1]

There is also an NCAA Men's National Collegiate Volleyball Championship, which until 2012 was open to members of all three NCAA divisions,, as there are far fewer men's programs than women's. However, starting in the 2011–12 school year (2011 women's season, 2012 men's season), a Division III championship was established. The National Collegiate championship now involves only Division I and II members; under NCAA rules, D-II schools can compete under D-I rules in any sport that does not have a dedicated D-II national championship.

Champions

• The following is a list of Division I champions and runners-up with the champion's overall record, city, site and other national semifinal participants.

See Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women championships for the Division I volleyball champions from 1970 to 1981. NOTE: In 1981 there were both NCAA and AIAW champions.

style= colspan=11	NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Championship^[2]
Year	Host City (University)	Host Arena		Final				Third Place Final / Semifinalists
				width=12%	Winner	width=8%		Score	width=12%	Runner-up	width=10%	Third Place	width=5%	Score	width=10%	Fourth Place
1981	Los Angeles (UCLA)	Pauley Pavilion		USC (27 - 10)	3–2	UCLA		San Diego State	3–0	Pacific
1982	Stockton, California (Pacific)	Alex G. Spanos Center		Hawaiʻi (33 - 1)	3–2	USC		San Diego State	3–2	Stanford
1983	Lexington, Kentucky (Kentucky)	Memorial Coliseum		Hawaiʻi (34 - 2)	3–0	UCLA		Stanford	3–1	Pacific
1984	Los Angeles (UCLA)	Pauley Pavilion		UCLA (33 - 6)	3–2	Stanford		Pacific	3–1	San Jose State
1985	Kalamazoo, Michigan (Western Michigan)	Read Fieldhouse		Pacific (36 - 3)	3–1	Stanford		USC	3–2	UCLA
1986	Stockton, California (Pacific)	Alex G. Spanos Center		Pacific (39 - 3)	3–0	Nebraska		Texas, Stanford
1987	Indianapolis	Market Square Arena		Hawaiʻi (37 - 2)	3–1	Stanford		Illinois, Texas
1988	Minneapolis (Minnesota)	Williams Arena		Texas (34 - 5)	3–0	Hawaiʻi		Illinois, UCLA
1989	Honolulu, Hawaii (Hawaiʻi)	Blaisdell Arena		Long Beach State (32 - 5)	3–0	Nebraska		UT Arlington, UCLA
1990	College Park, Maryland (Maryland)	Cole Field House		UCLA (36–1)	3–0	Pacific		LSU, Nebraska
1991	Los Angeles (UCLA)	Pauley Pavilion		UCLA (31–5)	3–2	Long Beach State		LSU, Ohio State
1992	Albuquerque, New Mexico (New Mexico)	University Arena		Stanford (31 - 2)	3–1	UCLA		Long Beach State, Florida
1993	Madison, Wisconsin (Wisconsin)	UW Field House		Long Beach State (32 - 2)	3–1	Penn State		BYU, Florida
1994	Austin, Texas (Texas)	Frank Erwin Center		Stanford (32 - 1)	3–1	UCLA		Penn State, Ohio State
1995	Amherst, Massachusetts (Massachusetts)	Mullins Center		Nebraska (32 - 1)	3–1	Texas		Stanford, Michigan State
1996	Cleveland, Ohio (Cleveland State)	CSU Convocation Center		Stanford (31 - 2)	3–0	Hawaiʻi		Nebraska, Florida
1997	Spokane, Washington (Washington State)	Spokane Arena		Stanford (33 - 2)	3–2	Penn State		Long Beach State, Florida
1998	Madison, Wisconsin (Wisconsin)	Kohl Center		Long Beach State (36 - 0)	3–2	Penn State		Nebraska, Florida
1999	Honolulu, Hawaii (Hawaiʻi)	Stan Sheriff Center		Penn State (36 - 1)	3–0	Stanford		Long Beach State, Pacific
2000	Richmond, Virginia (VCU)	Richmond Coliseum		Nebraska (34 - 0)	3–2	Wisconsin		Hawaiʻi, USC
2001	San Diego (San Diego State)	Cox Arena		Stanford (33 - 2)	3–0	Long Beach State		Arizona, Nebraska
2002	New Orleans (New Orleans)	New Orleans Arena		USC (31 - 1)	3–1	Stanford		Hawaiʻi, Florida
2003	Dallas			USC (35 - 0)	3–1	Florida		Hawaiʻi, Minnesota
2004	Long Beach, California (Long Beach State)	Long Beach Arena		Stanford (30 - 6)	3–0	Minnesota		USC, Washington
2005	San Antonio (UTSA)	Alamodome		Washington (32 - 1)	3–0	Nebraska		Santa Clara, Tennessee
2006	Omaha, Nebraska (Nebraska)	Qwest Center		Nebraska (33 - 1)	3–1	Stanford		UCLA, Washington
2007	Sacramento, California (Sacramento State)	ARCO Arena		Penn State (34 - 2)	3–2	Stanford		California, USC
2008	Omaha, Nebraska (Nebraska)	Qwest Center		Penn State (38 - 0)	3–0	Stanford		Nebraska, Texas
2009	Tampa, Florida (South Florida)	St. Pete Times Forum		Penn State (38 - 0)	3–2	Texas		Hawaiʻi, Minnesota
2010	Kansas City, Missouri (UMKC)	Sprint Center		Penn State (32 - 5)	3–0	California		Texas, USC
2011	San Antonio (UTSA)	Alamodome		UCLA (30 - 6)	3–1	Illinois		Florida State, USC
2012	Louisville, Kentucky (Louisville)	KFC Yum! Center		Texas (29 - 4)	3–0	Oregon		Michigan, Penn State
2013	Seattle, Washington (Washington)	KeyArena		Penn State (34 - 2)	3–1	Wisconsin		Texas, Washington
2014	Oklahoma City (Oklahoma)	Chesapeake Energy Arena		Penn State (36 - 3)	3–0	BYU		Stanford, Texas
2015	Omaha, Nebraska (Nebraska)	CenturyLink Center Omaha		Nebraska (32 - 4)	3–0	Texas		Kansas, Minnesota
2016	Columbus, Ohio (Ohio State)	Nationwide Arena		Stanford (27 - 7)	3–1	Texas		Minnesota, Nebraska
2017	Kansas City, Missouri (UMKC & Kansas)	Sprint Center		Nebraska (33 - 4)	3–1	Florida		Penn State, Stanford
2018	Minneapolis, Minnesota (Minnesota)	Target Center		Stanford (34 - 1)	3–2	Nebraska		BYU, Illinois
2019	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (Duquesne)	PPG Paints Arena		Stanford (30–4)	3–0	Wisconsin		Baylor, Minnesota
2020	Omaha, Nebraska (Nebraska)	CHI Health Center Omaha		Kentucky (24–1)	3–1	Texas		Washington, Wisconsin
2021	Columbus, Ohio (Ohio State)	Nationwide Arena		Wisconsin (31–3)	3–2	Nebraska		Louisville, Pittsburgh
2022	Omaha, Nebraska (Nebraska)	CHI Health Center Omaha		Texas (28–1)	3–0	Louisville		Pittsburgh, San Diego
2023	Tampa, Florida (South Florida)	Amalie Arena		Texas (28–4)	3–0	Nebraska		Pittsburgh, Wisconsin
2024	Louisville, Kentucky (Louisville)	KFC Yum! Center
2025	Kansas City, Missouri (Kansas)	T-Mobile Center

Statistics

Team titles

Team	Number	Year won
Stanford	9	1992, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2001, 2004, 2016, 2018, 2019
Penn State	7	1999, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2014
Nebraska	5	1995, 2000, 2006, 2015, 2017
Texas	4	1988, 2012, 2022, 2023
UCLA	4	1984, 1990, 1991, 2011
Hawaiʻi	3	1982, 1983, 1987
	3	1989, 1993, 1998
USC	3	1981, 2002, 2003
Pacific	2	1985, 1986
Kentucky	1	align=left	2020
Washington	1	2005
Wisconsin	1	2021

Champions by decade

1980s

3

Hawaiʻi

2

Pacific

1

Long Beach State, Texas, UCLA, USC

1990s

4

Stanford

2

Long Beach State, UCLA

1

Nebraska, Penn State

2000s

3

Penn State

2

Nebraska, Stanford, USC

1

Washington

2010s

3

Penn State, Stanford

2

Nebraska

1

Texas, UCLA

2020s

2

Texas

1

Kentucky

1

Wisconsin

Winners of two or more consecutive championships

Wins	Team	Years
4	Penn State	2007–2010
2	Hawaiʻi	1982, 1983
	Pacific	1985, 1986
	UCLA	1990, 1991
	Stanford	1996, 1997, 2018, 2019
	USC	2002, 2003
	Penn State	2013, 2014
	Texas	2022, 2023

Common Matchups in Championship Final

of Times	Matchup	Record	Years Played
4	Penn State vs Stanford	Penn State 3–1	1997, 1999, 2007, 2008
3	Nebraska vs Texas	Nebraska 2–1	1995, 2015, 2023
	Stanford vs UCLA	Stanford 2–1	1984, 1992, 1994
2	Hawaiʻi vs Stanford	Tied 1–1	1987, 1996
	Long Beach State vs Penn State	Long Beach State 2–0	1993, 1998
	Nebraska vs Stanford	Tied 1–1	2006, 2018
	Nebraska vs Wisconsin	Tied 1–1	2000, 2021

Champions by state

State!scope="col"

Wins	Years won
California	21	1981, 1984–1986, 1989–1994, 1996–1998, 2001–2004, 2011, 2016, 2018, 2019
Pennsylvania	7	1999, 2007–2010, 2013, 2014
Nebraska	5	1995, 2000, 2006, 2015, 2017
Texas	4	1988, 2012, 2022, 2023
Hawaii	3	1982, 1983, 1987
Kentucky	1	2020
Washington	1	2005
Wisconsin	1	2021

Final 4 Appearances

Team	Number	Champion	Runner-up	Semifinalist
Stanford	23	9	8	6
UCLA	12	4	4	4
USC	10	3	1	6
Washington	5	1	0	4
Cal	2	0	1	1
Arizona	1	0	0	1
Oregon	1	0	1	0
Nebraska	16	5	6	5
Penn State	13	7	3	3
Minnesota	6	0	1	5
Wisconsin	6	1	3	2
Illinois	4	0	1	3
Ohio State	2	0	0	2
Michigan State	1	0	0	1
Michigan	1	0	0	1
Florida	8	0	2	6
LSU	2	0	0	2
Kentucky	1	1	0	0
Tennessee	1	0	0	1
Texas	14	4	5	5
bgcolor=#ebe701	BYU	3	0	1	2
Baylor	1	0	0	1
Kansas	1	0	0	1
Pittsburgh	3	0	0	3
Louisville	2	0	1	1
Florida State	1	0	0	1
Pacific	7	2	1	4
Santa Clara	1	0	0	1
San Diego	1	0	0	1
Hawaiʻi	9	3	2	4
Long Beach State	8	3	2	3
San Diego State	2	0	0	2
San Jose State	1	0	0	1
UT Arlington	1	0	0	1

Current Conference Key

Pac 12
Big Ten
SEC
Big 12
ACC
West Coast
Big West
Mountain West
WAC

Records

• Highest attendance: 19,727 (2023 championship match)
• Lowest attendance for a championship match: 0 (2020)^[3]
• Lowest seed to win championship: 11 (Stanford, 2004)
• Lowest seed in championship game: Unseeded (BYU, 2014)
• Most championships: Stanford (9)
• Most consecutive championships: Penn State (4, 2007–10)
• Most consecutive postseason victories: Penn State (26)
• Most championships by a head coach: Russ Rose (7)
• Most championships by conference: Pac-12 (17)
• Most appearances in championship match: Stanford (17)
• Most semifinal appearances: Stanford (23)
• Most semifinal appearances without a championship: Florida (8)
• Undefeated seasons (since 1981): Long Beach State (1998), Nebraska (2000), USC (2003), Penn State (2008, 2009)

^{[2] [4]}

Most Outstanding Player

In 1991 and now annually since 1996, the NCAA has awarded the most outstanding player(s) of the NCAA championship.^[2]

Year	Most Outstanding Player	School
1991	Natalie Williams Antoinnette White	UCLA Long Beach State
1996	Kerri Walsh	Stanford
1997	Terri Zemaitis	Penn State
1998		Long Beach State Penn State
1999	Lauren Cacciamani	Penn State
2000	Greichaly Cepero	Nebraska
2001	Logan Tom	Stanford
2002	Keao Burdine	Southern California
2003	Keao Burdine	Southern California
2004	Ogonna Nnamani	Stanford
2005	Christal Morrison	Washington
2006	Sarah Pavan	Nebraska
2007	Megan Hodge	Penn State
2008	Megan Hodge	Penn State
2009	Destinee Hooker	Texas
2010	Deja McClendon	Penn State
2011	Rachael Kidder	UCLA
2012	Bailey Webster	Texas
2013	Micha Hancock	Penn State
2014	Megan Courtney	Penn State
2015	Mikaela Foecke	Nebraska
2016		Stanford
2017	Mikaela Foecke Kelly Hunter	Nebraska
2018	Morgan Hentz Kathryn Plummer	Stanford
2019	Kathryn Plummer	Stanford
2020	Madison Lilley	Kentucky
2021	Anna Smrek	Wisconsin
2022	Logan Eggleston	Texas
2023	Madisen Skinner	Texas

See also

• AIAW Intercollegiate Women's Volleyball Champions
• NAIA Volleyball Championship
• NCAA men's volleyball tournament (National Collegiate division)
• NCAA Division II women's volleyball tournament
• NCAA Division III men's volleyball tournament
• NCAA Division III women's volleyball tournament
• American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA)

External links

• NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball

Notes and References

1. Web site: 2015 NCAA Women's Volleyball Tournament Statistics and Records. NCAA.org. 2 December 2016.
2. http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/w_volleyball_champs_records/2012/d1/DI.pdf
3. Web site: Women's Volleyball Box Score: Texas vs. Kentucky . Kentucky Wildcats . April 24, 2021 . May 19, 2021.
4. http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/w_volleyball_RB/2013/Att.pdf