AT 23-0, THE COMETS ARE ON THE CUSP OF A SECOND STRAIGHT NCAA III TOURNAMENT BERTH
RICHARDSON, TX (11.04.09) – UT Dallas, the first unbeaten team in league history, will have a chance to safeguard its perfect record and earn its second straight NCAA III Championship berth when it hosts the 2009 American Southwest Conference Volleyball Championship Tournament this weekend.
The Comets (23-0, 17-0) can segue to the national stage with a pair of wins—on their home court—against the conference’s best.
As the East Division’s No. 1 seed, they will face the winner of Texas Lutheran and Mississippi College in a semifinal match on Friday, Nov. 6 at 7:30 pm. Should the Comets win, they will advance to the championship match, scheduled for 2:00 pm Saturday, Nov. 7.
The tournament kicks off with a quarterfinal match at 12 noon in the UTD Activity Center with East Texas Baptist (No. 2 East, 20-10) taking on McMurry (No. 3 West, 17-11). The other quarterfinal match at 2:30 pm will feature TLU (No. 2 West, 19-9) and MC (No. 3 East, 13-13). The ETBU/McMurry winner will meet Hardin-Simmons (No. 1 West, 21-6) in the other semifinal at 5:00 pm Friday.
UTD compiled a pair of 3-0 victories against both TLU and MC during the regular season, but found more resistance from teams it could potentially meet in the final. East Texas Baptist, the No. 2 seed in the East, forced a five-game match against UTD on Oct. 23, while Hardin-Simmons, the top-seeded West Division squad, stole one game from the Comets on Oct. 3.
UTD outlasted ETBU in the 2008 title tilt, but fell to No. 13 Southwestern in the opening round of the NCAA III Tournament. The Comets have made six consecutive ASC Tournament appearances, dating back to 2004.
Ranked No. 10 in the latest AVCA poll, UTD coach
Marci Sanders will look to former All-Tournament selections
Amber Wetz,
Niki Calverley and
Kyleigh Irish, the 2008 MVP, to catalyze a team that has captured 23 straight league wins, stretching back to last season. The Comets still remain the only undefeated volleyball program in all of NCAA Division III.
All tournament matches will be held at the UTD Activity Center (Richardson, TX), found near the south entrance of campus. Fans can follow along online, where updates, live stats and broadcasts of the semifinal and final matches will be made available. The link to the tournament site can be found below.
>>TOURNAMENT CENTRAL PAGE (Live Stats, Stories, Stats, Etc.) - LINK HERE