Cardinals Will Host Wright State in NCAA First Round

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LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Making their 32^nd NCAA appearance, the No. 5 University of Louisville volleyball team will host Wright State Thursday, November 1 at 7 p.m. at the KFC Yum! Center. Should the Cardinals advance, they will face the winner of the Auburn/Western Michigan, which will be contested at 4 p.m. prior to UofL's match.

In their conference-leading 32nd appearance following their historic 2022 NCAA run, the No. 2-seeded Louisville Cardinals (24-4, 15-3) finished second in the ACC race. UofL will be led on offense by senior Anna DeBeer, graduate Aiko Jones and transfer Charitie Luper. DeBeer and Jones joined the 1,000 + career kill club this year and Luper is coming off a career-high 24 kills against Pitt. Shoring up the block will be middles Cara Cresse (ACC Defensive Player of the Week) and Phekran Kong. Setter Elle Glock (four-time ACC Setter of the Week) and libero Elena Scott (three-time ACC Defensive Player of the Week) round up the Cardinal starters.

Thirty-two conferences were awarded an automatic qualification, while the remaining 32 positions were filled with at-large selections to complete the bracket. Nebraska, Stanford, Wisconsin and Pittsburgh earned the top seeds in this year's tournament. Should the Cards advance, they would head to the Pittsburgh Regional.

For the second year, the top 32 teams were seeded nationally in pods of four and placed within four regions. Per the established bracketing principles, the top seeds were provided the opportunity to host. Additionally, team pairings are determined within the pods (ones paired with eights, twos paired with sevens, threes paired with sixes and fours paired with fives) and assigned geographically within their pods, with the exception that teams from the same conference are not paired during the first- and second rounds.

The regional winners will advance to the national semifinals and championship final hosted by the University of South Florida, in conjunction with the Tampa Bay Sports Commission December 14&17 at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Fla. The national semifinal matches will broadcast on ESPN, and the championship match will broadcast on ABC.

Ticket Information
The Cards are set to host the First and Second Rounds inside the KFC Yum! Center on November 30 and December 1.

No. 7 Auburn vs Western Michigan on Thursday at 4 p.m.
No. 2 Louisville vs Wright State on Thursday at 7 p.m.
Winner of Game 1 vs Winner of Game 2 on Friday

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Single match tickets will go on sale tomorrow at 10 AM EST

Support Louisville Volleyball in the Postseason
The Cardinal Athletic Fund is offering fans a chance to win one-of-kind match day experiences throughout Louisville Volleyball's postseason run. All funds will make a direct impact on the Louisville Volleyball program, plus every $50 donation automatically enters fans into a drawing for an exclusive VIP experience at the upcoming weekend's matches. There is no cap on the giving level – every additional $50 donated gives fans another entry into the drawing.

The first and second round experiences include access to practice, entry to the match, parking at the KFC Yum! Center, suite tickets and complimentary catering. Should the Cards advance, re-entry will be required following the opening weekend and the Regional Finals. Visit GoCards.com/VBPostseason to make a contribution.

About the Raiders
Wright State went 21-10 overall and 15-3 in the Horizon League. Winners of their final nine games, the Raiders swept Cleveland State in the semifinals of the Horizon League tournament and swept Green Bay in the championship. Wright State faced off against Louisville early in the season in the Cardinal Classic, falling in four sets. The Raiders are led by head coach Travers Green in his second season at the helm, having guided the team to an 18-0 conference record, Horizon League tournament title, and an appearance in the NCAA tournament. On the court, outside hitter Megan Alders and right-side hitter Callie Martin lead the attack, with the former tallying 358 kills and the latter tallying 341 kills on the year. Defensively, libero Jenny Wessling has recorded an incredible 5.26 digs per set for a total of 600 digs, and middle blocker Aaliyah Byers leads with 114 blocks. This will be the 10th meeting all-time between the two schools, with the Raiders holding a 6-3 advantage in the series.

The Cards in 2022
The No. 2 overall seed and the No. 2-ranked University of Louisville volleyball team (31-3, 17-1) advanced to its second-straight Final Four appearance. After beating ACC rival Pittsburgh in the Semi-finals, the Cardinals advanced to their first-ever NCAA Championships match before falling to top-seeded Texas. The Cardinals earned their spot in the Final Four after sweeping No. 4 Baylor in the Sweet 16, before defeating No. 3 Oregon in a five-set thriller in the Elite Eight. The Cards dispatched Samford and Purdue in the first and second rounds at L&N Federal Credit Union Arena without dropping a set. UofL earned the ACC's automatic qualifier with a 17-1 record in the league with Dani Busboom Kelly being voted ACC Coach of the Year. Claire Chaussee was voted ACC Player of the Year. Raquel Lazaro was voted ACC Setter of the Year and libero Elena Scott winning ACC Defensive Player of the Year.

University of Louisville Athletics

Players Mentioned

Claire Chaussee

Cara Cresse

Anna DeBeer

Elle Glock

Aiko Jones

Phekran Kong

Raquel Lazaro

Charitie Luper

Elena Scott

Elena Scott

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