KU volleyball to face Mizzou in opening round of NCAA Tournament

By Matt Tait     Nov 26, 2017
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Three losses in their final four matches of the regular season cost the Kansas volleyball team the opportunity to host the first and second rounds of next week’s NCAA Tournament.

But the Jayhawks are firmly in the field and will be matched up with a couple of familiar foes during the tournament’s opening week.

Placed in the region with No. 1 overall seed Penn State, Kansas will take on former Border War rival Missouri on Friday in Wichita, with the winner moving on to face the winner of Wichita State’s match with Radford in Round 2.

Kansas has faced both Missouri and Wichita State during recent NCAA Tournaments and has unique rivalries with both programs.

The 16th-seeded Shockers were the final team to earn the right to host the first two rounds.

Also hosting in the first two rounds are Big 12 foes Texas, Baylor and Iowa State.

Despite their struggles down the stretch, the Jayhawks, which reached their first ever Final Four two seasons ago, have their eyes on a return trip to the Final Four to send the seven seniors responsible for the rise of the program out in style.

This year’s Final Four will take place down the road at Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo., and the Jayhawks have dubbed their upcoming journey “The Road to Kansas City.”

Stay in touch with Kusports.com the rest of the night for more reaction to KU’s draw.

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Written By Matt Tait

A native of Colorado, Matt moved to Lawrence in 1988 and has been in town ever since. He graduated from Lawrence High in 1996 and the University of Kansas in 2000 with a degree in Journalism. After covering KU sports for the University Daily Kansan and Rivals.com, Matt joined the World Company (and later Ogden Publications) in 2001 and has held several positions with the paper and KUsports.com in the past 20+ years. He became the Journal-World Sports Editor in 2018. Throughout his career, Matt has won several local and national awards from both the Associated Press Sports Editors and the Kansas Press Association. In 2021, he was named the Kansas Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. Matt lives in Lawrence with his wife, Allison, and two daughters, Kate and Molly. When he's not covering KU sports, he likes to spend his time playing basketball and golf, listening to and writing music and traveling the world with friends and family.