The NCAA Division I Womens Volleyball Committee revealed the 64-team field for the 2001 NCAA Division I Womens Volleyball Championship. Thirty-one conferences were awarded automatic bids, while the remaining 33 slots were filled with at-large selections.
The top 16 teams were seeded nationally and placed within four regions. The top seeds were Long Beach State University, University of Nebraska, Stanford University and University of Southern California.
The Western Athletic Conference placed three teams in the NCAA Tournament. Hawai`i (27-5) earned the ninth seed and Nevada (17-7) and San Jose State (24-7) were placed in the bracket with third-seeded Stanford. The three teams advancing to postseason is the most for the WAC since six advanced in 1998.
The ninth-seeded Wahine will travel to Pullman, Wash., and face the host school, Washington State on Nov. 30. Hawai`i has not faced Washington State since 1989 when the Wahine beat the Cougars twice that season. If the Wahine advance, they will take on the winner of the Eastern Washington/Oregon State match.
Nevada and San Jose State are in Regional Three in Palo Alto, Calif. Nevada takes on host school and third-seeded Stanford. This is the Wolf Packs second appearance in the NCAA Tournament. Their only other appearance was during the 1998 campaign. Nevada last faced the Cardinal in 1997 when Stanford bested the Wolf Pack. San Jose State will take on instate rival Santa Clara. The Spartans hold the series lead 27-6. Santa Clara defeated San Jose State, 3-0, on Sept. 4 in San Diego, Calif.
Both the Wolf Pack and the Spartans will play on Friday, Nov. 30. Second round matches for all three WAC teams are on Dec. 1.