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Wichita State Crowned NIVC Champs
WICHITA STATE 3, UTEP 0 (25-14, 25-22, 25-22)
EL PASO, TX – Wichita State thrived in difficult circumstances Tuesday, playing in front of UTEP’s third straight sellout crowd but never blinking as the Shockers posted the sweep and walked away as the champions of the 2023 NIVC. The Shockers (26-8) hit .292 overall and had two more kills on 22 fewer attacks. The Miners close the season at 25-10. Set 1 saw both teams get off the mark slowly, but Wichita State found traction first and enjoyed a 15-9 lead after a UTEP error and two kills from Sophia Rohling. The Miners tried another timeout when the lead expanded to 18-9, but WSU never wavered, making just three hitting errors in the frame. Set 2 progressed to an 18-all tie, but two UTEP errors and two kills from sophomore Emerson Wilford launched the Shockers in front, 22-18. Wilford also got the kill that finished off the frame. In Set 3, Wichita State again grabbed an important late lead at 22-18. Marian Ovalle pulled the Miners within 23-21, but Wilford had one more kill in her arsenal, as did Morgan Weber, who wrapped up the match. UTEP finished 10 service errors to just three for WSU. Wilford was the only player to reach double figures in kills with 11; Izzi Strand had 29 assists and Gabi Maas came through with 12 digs. For UTEP, Alianza Darley had nine kills – Mattie Gantt dished out 17 assists and Kalia Kohler had 16 assists. Wichita State now leads the overall series 7-2. After the match, the 2023 NIVC all-tournament team was announced: Izzi Strand – Wichita State (MVP) Gabi Maas – Wichita State Morgan Stout – Wichita State Alianza Darley – UTEP Kaya Weaver – UTEP Maria Clara Andrade – South Florida Kira Thomsen – Montana State HeadlinesDec. 12, 2023 - Championship recap
Dec. 10, 2023 - Fab 4 recap Dec. 9, 2023 - Fab 4 recap Dec. 8, 2023 - Montana State masters the transition during Fab 4 run Dec. 7, 2023 - Great 8 recap Dec. 6, 2023 - Great 8 recap Dec. 6, 2023 - Great 8 recap Dec. 6, 2023 - Great 8 recap Dec. 1-2, 2023 - Super 16 recaps Nov. 29-30, 2023 - Round 1 recaps Nov. 29, 2023 - Hornets stitch together all the pieces, enter NIVC with seamless approach Nov. 26, 2023 - 2023 NIVC announces 32 team field with Round 1-2 details |
2023 NIVC Teams
Automatic Qualifiers
Buffalo (23-8) – Mid-American* Citadel (27-3) – Southern* Drake (22-10) – Missouri Valley Howard (17-14) – Mid-Eastern Athletic Sacramento State (21-11) – Big Sky* St. John’s (23-10) – Big East South Florida (19-11) – American* UMKC (22-8) – Summit* Wichita State (21-8) – American Winthrop (14-13) – Big South) -- 18-12 Santa Clara (WCC) – 12-18 *UT Martin (Ohio Valley) -- 22-11 *UT-Rio Grande Valley (WAC) – 25-6 Xavier (Big East) – 19-11 *Denotes conference regular season champion AT-LARGE TEAMS
Arkansas State (16-14) – Sun Belt Ball State (16-14) – Mid-American Chicago State (13-8) – Independent Clemson (17-13) – Atlantic Coast DePaul (17-14) – Big East East Carolina (20-10) – American Eastern Kentucky (21-8) – Atlantic Sun Florida Atlantic (20-12) – American Georgia Southern (21-8) – Sun Belt Middle Tennessee (20-9) – Conference USA Montana State (21-8) – Big Sky North Texas (17-15) – American Northern Colorado (17-11) – Big Sky Pacific (18-10) – West Coast South Dakota (18-10) – Summit* Southern Illinois (20-11) – Missouri Valley Tulsa (17-14) – American UNLV (19-12) – Mountain West UT Arlington (20-10) – Western Athletic UTEP (21-9) – Conference USA Valparaiso (18-14) – Missouri Valley Wyoming (20-9) – Mountain West |