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Arizona Volleyball earns NCAA Tournament bid, will play Missouri first

By Eric Townsend

TOKYO, JAPAN - AUGUST 27: The FIVB Women's Volleyball World Cup Japan 2015 ball is seen on the court in the match between Kenya and Argentina during the FIVB Women's Volleyball World Cup Japan 2015 at Yoyogi National Stadium on August 27, 2015 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Christopher Jue/Getty Images for FIVB)
TOKYO, JAPAN - AUGUST 27: The FIVB Women's Volleyball World Cup Japan 2015 ball is seen on the court in the match between Kenya and Argentina during the FIVB Women's Volleyball World Cup Japan 2015 at Yoyogi National Stadium on August 27, 2015 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Christopher Jue/Getty Images for FIVB) /
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Arizona Volleyball (22-10, 11-9) concluded the regular season, and now gears up for a first round showdown in the NCAA Tournament against Missouri.

For those who haven’t followed, it has been a great year for Arizona Volleyball! After winning their most games since the 2014 season, the Wildcats are once again heading to the Tournament!

The Wildcats capped off their remarkable regular season by sweeping ASU 3-0 for the second time this year. Following that game, it seemed like Arizona was destined for the NCAA Tournament, but the question was where the Wildcats would end up.

Arizona Wildcats
Arizona Wildcats /

Arizona Wildcats

Huddled inside McKale Center, fixated on the TV on Sunday afternoon, the team sat patiently, awaiting to learn their NCAA Tournament fate.

Time passed and many teams’ names were called. Finally! The Wildcats were announced!

With a record of 22-10 (11-9), the Cats are officially going dancing! Arizona will dance their the way to Lincoln, NE where they will first square off with SEC foe, the Missouri Tigers (23-7, 13-5) on Friday.

Should they win that match, they will face the winner of site host Nebraska (the 2017 National Champion) or either Hofstra. The first game will take place on Friday at 3:30 pm MST/ 2:30 PST.

If Arizona is to win their region, they are going to need quite a bit of help from a few different players, especially senior outside hitter, Kendra Dahlke. The senior has had a tremendous year and career, totaling 477 kills on the year (which leads the Pac-12). The next closest on the team is Paige Whipple with 336 herself.

They will face a tough Missouri team with an impressive resume. This season, the Tigers finished fourth in the competitive SEC conference.

Luckily for Arizona, this shouldn’t phase them too much. The Wildcats are used to competition, having to battle inside the Pac-12 Conference.

This year, the Pac-12 will send eight teams to the tournament, six of those being ranked in the Top 25! Now that’s impressive!

The road won’t be easy, but at least the Wildcats are battle tested heading into this one!

Here is head coach David Rubio talking about his team prior to the NCAA Tournament.

https://twitter.com/ArizonaVBall/status/1067546106668572673

This years’ NCAA Tournament can be followed here.

More. On Arizona Athletics. light

At Zona Zealots, we are proud of the Wildcats making it to the tournament and can’t wait to see how they perform! As always, Bear Down Arizona!

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