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ST. PAUL, Minn. - The third-ranked Concordia University volleyball team (32-3) continues their pursuit for an unprecedented seventh consecutive national championship this week as they head to Cedar Rapids, Iowa for the Elite Eight at U.S. Cellular Center. The Golden Bears open up with a rematch of the 2012 national championship game with the top-ranked Tampa Spartans (32-1) on Thursday, Dec. 12 at 5 p.m.
MATCH PREVIEW:
Concordia is 7-3 all-time against Tampa and has faced Tampa twice in the national championship, winnning both meetings (2010 CU won in four sets, 2012 CU won in five sets). Concordia and Tampa have met once in the national quarterfinals (2005, Tampa won in five sets) and once in the national semifinals (2011, CU won in three sets). CU also played Tampa back on September 14th in Denver and won in four sets, handing the Spartans their only loss of the season.
On Friday, if CU advances, they will take on the winner of #9 Wingate and #25 Wheeling Jesuit.
Concordia won the first ever meeting with Wingate last season in the Elite Eight in four sets. The two teams also met earlier this season on September 8th, resulting in a CU sweep of Wingate at Gangelhoff Center.
A meeting with Wheeling Jesuit would be the first ever between the two schools.
ROAD TO THE ELITE EIGHT:
Concordia won the NCAA Central Region Volleyball Tournament and gained their seventh straight trip to the Elite Eight. CU opened play with a three set win over sixth-seed Northern State on Thursday by scores of 25-18, 25-20 and 25-10. They followed it up with a sweep of second-seed Central Missouri, taking the three sets 25-20, 25-20 and 25-12. In the region final, Concordia faced a familiar foe in top-seed Minnesota Duluth. It was the fourth meeting between the two schools, with UMD winning the last two. Concordia came out firing in the first set to grab a 25-17 win, but the Bulldogs responded in the second with a 25-20 win to even the match at one. The Golden Bears used a late run to take the third set 25-21 and jumped on UMD early in the fourth as they won the deciding set 25-20 to win the match. CU hit .373 compared to just .178 for their opponents in the tournament.
Winning its fifth straight NCAA Division II South Region title, the No. 1 University of Tampa volleyball team defeated the No. 23 University of West Florida 3-1 to advance to the NCAA Division II Quarterfinals. The Spartans swept Kentucky State in the region quarterfinals and Florida Southern in the region semifinals to advance to the region title.
NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY:
Concordia has won six consecutive NCAA Division II Championships, the longest streak in Division II history and tied for the longest streak at any level. This season, Concordia is attempting to set the NCAA record with seven straight titles. The record is currently shared with Washington University (St. Louis) at the Division III level between 1991 and 1996.
Not only is Concordia tied for most consecutive championships, but its six total titles is still more than any other DII program, with the next closest being Portland State (4) while Barry University and West Texas A&M each have three titles.
Concordia has now won 39-consecutive matches in NCAA Tournament play, last losing in the regional title match in 2006 to Minnesota Duluth. Concordia holds a 49-4 all-time record in the NCAA Tournament and is 9-2 in regional final matches. Concordia is 29-2 in regional tournament play. The Golden Bears are 20-2 in the Elite Eight, going 7-1 in quarterfinal matches, 7-0 in semifinal matches and 6-1 in championships.
