Off the Block

Category: Division I-II

  • Conference tournament men’s volleyball matches to follow tonight

    The postseason spotlight is shining bright on the Chicago area tonight as the MIVA Tournament resumes with both semifinal matches.

    The defending-MIVA champions Lewis look to return to the conference championship match and end Grand Canyon’s underdog run as two teams play in their first postseason meeting against each other. In addition, Ball State will try to end a 14-year curse as it plays Loyola in other semifinal match.

    Check out the conference tournament matches from around the nation to follow tonight.
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  • Men’s volleyball bracketology

    The near upsets conference tournament quarterfinals during the weekend almost caused upheaval to the bracketology projections. However that overhaul to the projections for the four-team NCAA Tournament can still take place as the conference tournament semifinals begin Wednesday.

    The men’s volleyball NCAA Tournament is comprised of four teams. Automatic bids are awarded to the winners of the EIVA, MIVA and MPSF conference tournaments, and the NCAA Men’s Volleyball National Committee chooses one team for an at-large bid.
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  • Q&A with Harvard men’s volleyball coach Brian Baise

    Coach Brian Baise not only has the challenge this week of trying to guide Harvard to its first conference title in program history, but trying to achieve the feat in the aftermath of his team experiencing first-hand the effects of the Boston Bombings last week.

    Harvard after finishing the regular season in third place and clinching a postseason berth will open the four-team EIVA Tournament against the No. 2 seed George Mason at 5:30 p.m. Thursday in University Park, Pa. The winner of that match will play the winner of the semifinal match between Penn State and Princeton in the conference championship on Saturday.
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  • Q&A with NCAA Tourney selection committee chairman Brian Santiago

    It’s one of the busiest times of the year for men’s volleyball NCAA committee members as the conference tournaments are in full swing and Selection Sunday is less than a week away.

    Off the Block conducted an interview before the conference tournaments started with Brian Santiago, the chairman of the three-person committee that will decide the NCAA Tournament field. Santiago is in his fourth year on the committee and along with being a committee member is an associate athletics director at BYU.
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  • UCSB middle Davis named Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. National Blocker of the Year

    A nationwide voting committee has selected UC Santa Barbara middle attacker Dylan Davis as the recipient of the 2013 Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. National Blocker of the Year.

    The Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. National Blocker of the Year is annually awarded to the NCAA Division I-II men’s volleyball player with the best front-row defensive performance during the regular season.
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  • EIVA Tournament brackets now open for postseason bracket challenge

    The EIVA Tournament portion of the bracket challenge is open for volleyball fans to fill out for a chance to win an official NCAA Tournament volleyball from Molten USA.

    The annual Off the Block NCAA Men’s Volleyball Postseason Bracket Challenge gives fans the opportunity to predict who will win matches in the upcoming MPSF, MIVA and EIVA conference tournaments and the four-team NCAA Tournament.
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  • Loyola outside Smazler named Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. National Server of the Year

    A nationwide voting committee has selected Loyola outside attacker Joseph Smalzer as the inaugural recipient of the Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. National Server of the Year.

    The Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. National Server of the Year recognizes the top individual serving performance from a NCAA Division I-II men’s volleyball player during the regular season.
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  • Committee chairman: True expansion to NCAA Tournament not happening for years

    If it was up to NCAA committee chairman Brian Santiago, the men’s volleyball Division I-II NCAA Tournament would be expanded to eight teams.

    Instead Santiago is stuck in NCAA limbo, trying to make the best of a potentially bad situation.
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  • Initial look at the conference tournament semifinal matches

    The conference tournament quarterfinals are over and only 12 teams left in the nation control their own fate to reach the four-team NCAA Tournament.

    The conference tournament will continue for the EIVA, MIVA and MPSF this week with semifinal matches. Here is the initial look and the historical information to know about every conference tournament semifinal match.
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  • Deeper look at men’s volleyball NCAA Tournament selection criteria

    All the conference tournament quarterfinal matches are finished, and after the results no one should envy the job the NCAA men’s volleyball selection has to determine the at-large bid and Final Four field.

    Below is the entry from the 2013 NCAA men’s volleyball championship handbook on how the three-person volleyball selection committee determines the at-large team and seeding for the NCAA Tournament.
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