DALLAS – WKU swept Bowling Green (25-20, 25-23, 25-20) at the Memorial Coliseum in Lexington, Kentucky, while Rice beat Colorado in four sets (26-24,24-26,25-16,25-14) at the Ferrell Center in Waco, Texas, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
 
WKU (29-3) will advance to the second round, where the Hilltoppers will face Kentucky on December 2 at 6 p.m. CT on ESPN+.

Overall, the Hilltoppers had 44 kills, 35 digs, eight blocks and a .294 hitting percentage. Lauren Matthews, Katie Isenbarger and Paige Briggs each had a team-high 10 kills. C-USA Freshman of the Year Callie Bauer recorded 34 assists and four kills. Jennifer Rush added six kills on a team-high .750 hitting percentage.

Conference USA Champion Rice (27-3) advanced in the NCAA Tournament to match up against Baylor on December 2 at 7 p.m. CT on ESPN+.

C-USA Setter of the Year Carly Graham recorded a double-double with 49 assists and 17 digs. Sahara Maruska led the Owls in kills with 22 on a .309 hitting clip. Ellie Biechelmeyer recorded 17 kills and 5 digs hitting .333. C-USA Libero of the Year Nia McCardell had 21 digs, while Darby Harris had a team-high 22 digs. Danyle Courtley added 12 kills, hitting .290.

The 2022 Division 1 Volleyball Championship will take place at CHI Heath Center in Omaha, Nebraska. The national semifinals will be held on December 15, followed by the final on December 17 on ESPN2.