November 30, 1998

GREENSBORO, N.C. - Florida State, North Carolina, Clemson and Virginia will represent the Atlantic Coast Conference in the 1998 NCAA Women's Volleyball Tournament, according to the 64-team pairings announced Sunday.

The championship field of 64 teams will feature 16 first and second round matches from December 3-6. Winners will advance to play in four regional tournaments (Dec. 10-13). The first and second round and regional matches are set to be played on the campuses of one of the participating institutions. The four regional winners will meet for the championship on December 17 and 19 at the University of Wisconsin in the Kohl Center in Madison, Wis.

ACC Champion Florida State will travel to Louisville, Kentucky, for opening round action. The Lady Seminoles will face Northern Illinois University in the first round on Friday.

"While we are disappointed that we are not playing at home, we have a good chance at beating the three teams in our bracket," said head coach Dr. Cecile Reynaud. "They are all good teams. We have a lot of confidence after the ACC Tournament which I hope will carry over to this weekend."

"Going through the ACC Tournament without losing a game was a great boost for us," said senior setter Fiona Bolten. "Everyone is very excited to get to the NCAAs. I think we are in a good bracket to surprise some people."

Florida State, 25-10 overall, received an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament with its victory in the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship last weekend. Northern Illinois, 26-6 overall, is an at-large selection. The Huskies were defeated by Miami (Ohio) in the championship of the Mid-American Conference Tournament on Saturday. Friday's first round matchup will be the first meeting between the two schools.

In Friday's other opening round match in the four-team bracket, host-Louisville (27-4), the Conference USA champion, will battle American (29-5), the leader of the Colonial Conference. Friday's winners will meet on Saturday with the winner advancing to the Central Regional Tournament on December 10-13. Louisville was selected as the Central Region's number four seed. Penn State is the #1 seed followed by BYU at number two and Pacific as the third seed in the region.

Florida State returns to the Tournament following an opening round defeat in last year's NCAA Championships. This will be the tenth NCAA Tournament appearance for the Lady Seminoles and the eighth in the past 12 years.

The University of North Carolina volleyball team is headed to East Lansing, Mich. Thursday, December 3 to face Oral Roberts University in the first round. The match will begin at 6 p.m.

The Heels are the number five seed in the Pacific Division bracket. Other teams in the Pacific Division include top seeded Nebraska, Michigan State, Pepperdine and fellow ACC school Virginia. Michigan State, the number four seed in the Pacific, is the host for Carolina in the first round.

This is Carolina's first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 1989 when the Heels lost to Texas-Arlington in the first round. Head Coach Joe Sagula is preparing his team for the post season tournament.

"This is what we worked for all season," Sagula said. "We need to maintain our focus, go up to Michigan, and be ready to compete."

If the Heels win on Thursday, they will face the winner of the Michigan State/Pepperdine match on Friday.

Virginia, meanwhile, capped one of the finest seasons in school history with its first-ever NCAA bid.

The Cavaliers will travel to Santa Barbara, Calif. to compete against UCLA (15-11) in the first round on December 5. The time for Virginia's match is to be determined. UC Santa Barbara (26-5), the host institution, will play Santa Clara (20-9). The winners of both the matches will advance to play on Sunday, (Dec. 6).

This season, Virginia has won 26 matches (26-7), won two regular season tournaments, finished 12-4 in the Atlantic Coast Conference and advanced to the semifinals of the ACC Championships. UVa's 12 conference wins shattered the previous mark of seven victories set by the 1996 squad.

UVa earned an at-large bid, becoming one of 34 schools to gain an at-large bid, one of 10 schools making its first NCAA tournament appearance and one of four teams from the ACC to make the tournament this year.

Clemson will face Fairfield Friday in the first round. Penn State, the number one seed in the Central Region, is the host for the match and will play Bucknell on Friday. The winner of the Clemson/Fairfield match will face the winner of the Penn State/Bucknell match on Saturday.

"Were very excited about taking another trip into the NCAA Tournament," said Clemson head coach Jolene Jordan Hoover. "Were looking forward to having a great weekend of competition with some very good teams."

The Tigers (21-10, 10-6 ACC) are making their fourth trip to the NCAA Tournament in the last six years.