United States Coast Guard Academy - Department of Athletics - Volleyball - Bears Choosen as Top Seed in NCAA Regional

NEW LONDON, CONN.--(11/6/06)--The Coast Guard Academy volleyball team which won its first New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Tournament will be the top-seed at the NCAA Division III volleyball regional hosted by MIT.

The Bears have won a school-record 19 straight and are 23-2 overall, after beating Springfield 3-1 in the NEWMAC tournament championship game. The Bears make their first trip to the NCAA Tournament since the 1997 season. Coast Guard competed in the NCAA Tournament in 1995, 1996 and 1997 receiving at-large berths in each of those seasons. This is the first year the Bears earned an automatic bid.

Coast Guard will open the tournament on Thursday at 3:30 vs. eighth-seeded Mount Ida, the champion from the North Atlantic Conference (NAC). The Mustangs were a perfect 10-0 in the NAC and have an overall record of 21-9 after beating Lasell 3-2 in the NAC Tournament championship game. Mount Ida has won eight straight.

The regional begins on Thursday at 1 p.m when fourth-seeded Eastern Connecticut, the Little East champion, takes on fifth-seeded Endicott, the champion of the Commonwealth Coast Conference.

Third-seeded Amherst, the NESCAC champion, will take on sixth-seeded Emmanuel, the Great Northeast Athletic Conference champion, at 6 p.m. Second-seed and host MIT, which received an at-large bid, will take on seventh-seeded Bridgewater State, the MASCAC champion, at 8:30 p.m.

Coast Guard has just one senior on the team, co-captain Christine Rostowfske, who was named the NEWMAC Player of the Week on Monday as she totaled 144 assists, 27 digs and three service aces in the tournament. She is the Academy’s all-time leader with 4,027 assists.

The Bears won their first round game in 1995, 1996 and 1997 before being beaten in the second round three straight years.

The semifinals will be played on Friday at 4:30 and 7 p.m while the New England regional final on Saturday night at 7 p.m.

The winner of the regional will advance to the Elite Eight in Salem, Virginia which will be played November 16-18.

2006 NCAA Division III New England Regional @ MIT
Thursday, Nov. 9th—First Round
# 4 Eastern Conn. vs. # 5 Endicott, 1:00
# 1 Coast Guard vs. # 8 Mount Ida, 3:30
# 3 Amherst vs. # 6 Emmanuel, 6:00
# 2 MIT vs. # 7 Bridgewater State, 8:30

Friday, Nov. 10th—Regional Semifinals
#4/#5 winner vs. #1/#8 winner, 4:30
#3/#6 winner vs. #2/#7 winner, 7:00

Saturday, Nov. 11th—Regional Final
Semifinal winners, 4:00