FGCU VB: Conference Tournament Champions Are...

The postseason has come to an end FGCU as they dropped the championship game to Kennesaw 0-3 (23-25, 22-25, 17-25). Both the Eagles (22-10) and the Owls (21-4) were trying to make their first national tournament appearance in both program's history. Both teams put up a good fight, but the Owls were the better team and I wish them best of luck in the tournament.

"I was really pleased with the way we came out and opened up the match," FGCU head coach Matt Botsford said. "I thought the first set was really competitive and we were seeing some things we thought we could utilize and put us in position to win offensively."

"This is a feeling that as a coach you imagine, but until you get here it's hard to describe all the different emotions that are running through my mind. From the incredible amount of hard work that our players and staff have put into this thing, to all of the support staff that has sacrificed so much time to make our program better. I think about all of the alumni that were here tonight because they are big part of this too and the many alums who worked so hard to get this program to this moment," said Kennesaw head coach Keith Schunzel.

The A-SUN All-Tournament Team was announced shortly after the match.

Representing Kennesaw on the All-Tournament team were senior outside hitter and A-SUN First Team All-Conference member Anaiah Boyer (12 kills, one assist, four blocks and 13 digs), Senior setter and A-SUN Setter of the Year, A-SUN First Team All-Conference member, A-SUN All-Academic Team member and A-SUN Co-Scholar of the Year, Kristi Piedimonte (42 assists, five kills, one block and 11 digs), junior middle blocker and A-SUN First Team All-Conference member Liesl Engelbrecht (six kills, four blocks and one dig) and Senior libero Katarina Morton (21 digs, four assists and one ace). Boyner was also named All-Tournament Team MVP.

Representing FGCU were junior outside hitter and A-SUN First Team All-Conference member, A-SUN All-Academic Team member, A-SUN Co-Player of the Year, A-SUN Co-Scholar of the Year and CoSIDA Academic All-District recipient Amanda Carroll (15 kills and 15 digs) and A-SUN Freshman of the Year and A-SUN All-Freshman Team member Snowy Burnam (eight kills, one assist, five blocks and eight digs).

Junior outside hitter and A-SUN First Team All-Conference member and A-SUN Co-Player of the Year Carlyle Nusbaum of Lipscomb was also named on the All-Tournament Team, but I'm not sure if she was in attendance even if the tournament was hosted by Lipscomb.

With the win, Kennesaw not only won the conference tournament, but they have also earned an automatic bid for the national tournament and will represent the A-SUN.

FGCU, despite being runner-up for the second straight time, are strongly eligible to earn a possible chance to be in the return of the National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC) after 22 years, as announced at the AVCA Convention. The NIVC is the volleyball version of the National Invitational Tournament (NIT).

History Lesson of NIVC:
The NIVC started in 1989 as a 20-team event and ended in 1995. The inaugural champion was the University of Wisconsin. The Badgers were also the last champions in the tournament before shutting down and being defunct.

The list of champions are listed:
1989 – Wisconsin
1990 – Houston
1991 – Kentucky
1992 – Washington State
1993 – Louisiana State
1994 – Cal-State Northridge
1995 – Wisconsin

The NIVC is simply like this:

1. 64 DI teams from all 32 conferences that did not get berths in the NCAA Tournament will be in line for their opportunity for the postseason.

2. Teams offered an automatic berth shall be the team that is the highest-finishing team in its conference’s regular-season standings, and not selected for the NCAA Tournament in which their overall record is not a criteria. There will, however, be a list of tiebreakers and other criteria involved.

3. The NIVC will give 32 at-large berths to the top teams available. Any team from a Division I conference, or a Division I independent team, will be considered.

NIVC Setup:
1. It is a single-elimination tournament that will feature 32 first-round matches, followed by 16 second-round matches, eight third-round matches, four quarterfinal games, two semifinal matches, and the championship. It's similar to the MNIT and WNIT in college basketball.

2. The 64-team field will be announced late Sunday, November 26, 2017. The first round will start Tuesday, November 28, with the event ending Tuesday, December 12.

FGCU is more than likely a strong candidate to be in the NIVC, so anything can happen.