Nov. 30, 2014
NCAA Tournament Bracket | 
Selection Show Reaction | Ticket Info
LEXINGTON, Ky. – For a program-record 10th consecutive season, the Kentucky volleyball team earned an NCAA Tournament bid. Seeded 13th in the 64-team field, UK and Memorial Coliseum will host the first and second rounds of the tournament for the third consecutive year.
The Wildcats (26-5, 15-3 Southeastern Conference) will make their 16th NCAA appearance in program history and host Oakland at 7:30 p.m. ET Friday, December 5. Lipscomb will face Ohio State in the first match at 5 p.m. in Memorial Coliseum, while the winners will square off in the second round on Saturday at 7 p.m. ET.
“It’s always exciting, especially for our players,” UK head coach Craig Skinner said. “For our seniors, all four years they’ve been able to play in the NCAA Tournament, and being able to play at home is exciting as well. We are excited to get going, and happy to get to play on our home court against Oakland on Friday night.”
All-session tickets go on sale Monday at 9 a.m. ET and can be purchased at the UK Ticket Office, online at UKathletics.com/tickets or by calling the ticket office at (800) 928-2287 or (859) 257-1818. All-session tickets are $12 for reserved seats at Memorial Coliseum. Adult general admission tickets (19+) are $10, while seniors (65+) and youth (3-18) can purchase all-session tickets for $6. Single-session tickets, which are $8 for reserved seats and $7 for adult general admission seats and $5 for seniors and youth, go on sale Friday at 9 a.m. UK students can present their Wildcard ID at the ticket windows to receive a free ticket to sessions in which UK plays in.
Skinner has led the Wildcats to the NCAA Tournament in all 10 seasons as head coach. Kentucky is one of just 10 teams in the country to advance to the tournament in each of those 10 seasons. UK joins Colorado State, Florida, Hawaii, Nebraska, Penn State, Southern California, Stanford, Texas and Washington in achieving the feat.
Kentucky opens play against Oakland on Friday. The Horizon League regular season and tournament champions, the Golden Grizzlies went 22-9 in 2014 and 12-2 in league competition. OU enters the postseason on a 10-match winning streak. Among common opponents, Oakland owns a 3-1 win over Missouri and 3-0 losses to Xavier and Lipscomb.
Friday’s contest between the Wildcats and Golden Grizzlies marks the first meeting in the all-time series.
Lipscomb, who Kentucky beat 3-1 on Sept. 18, is 21-8 in 2014. The Bisons were 13-1 in the Atlantic Sun to claim the regular season title. In the league tournament, Lipscomb fell in the finals, 3-1 to Jacksonville. UK is 3-0 all-time vs. the Bisons, with wins in each of the past three seasons, including a 3-1 victory in 2014.
Ohio State enters the postseason with a 21-11 record and a 12-8 mark in the Big Ten. The Buckeyes tied for fifth in the conference and have won two in a row. Against common opponents, OSU owns a 3-0 win over Auburn in the season’s second weekend and a 3-2 win over Xavier the following week. UK is 5-6 all-time vs. Ohio State, with 3-1 wins in 2010 and 2012.
Eight of UK’s 2014 opponents made the NCAA field, including four SEC foes. The Wildcats went 5-5 against teams in this year’s postseason.
Visit UKathletics.com for the most up-to-date information on the Kentucky volleyball team and all 22 varsity sports. For additional info on the volleyball team like Kentucky Volleyball on Facebook or follow the team on Twitter at @KentuckyVB.
