- DMACC will face sixth-seeded Grand Rapids CC in the first round
- Bears are in the tournament for the first time since 2015
- DMACC takes a 28-10 record into the tournament
The DMACC volleyball team has earned an at-large bid to the 2023 National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division II Volleyball Championship November 15 to 18 at Alliant Energy Powerhouse Arena in Cedar Rapids.
The Bears will be the No. 11 seed and will face sixth-seeded Grand Rapids Community College (GRCC) in the first round. Match time is 3:30 p.m. on Nov. 15. DMACC takes a 28-10 record and a No. 11 national ranking into the match. GRCC is 26-3 and ranked sixth. The Raiders also have a 24-match winning streak.
The DMACC volleyball team was hopeful of an at-large bid after finishing second to Iowa Central Community College (ICCC) in the NJCAA 2023 Division II Region XI Volleyball Tournament Nov. 1 to 5.
DMACC volleyball coach Danielle Lopez said she was optimistic that her team would receive an at-large bid but that there was still some apprehension. Her optimism came from regular season wins against Heartland Community College (HCC) and Kirkwood Community College (KCC), the only two teams ranked higher than DMACC that had not received automatic invitations to the tournament.
Four teams received at-large bids, including HCC and KCC.
"You never know what to expect," Lopez said. "We did have some hope because we had won against Heartland Community College (HCC) and we had won against Kirkwood Community College (KCC) so we did have some hope that we would get one of those bids and we're very excited and very grateful that it did happen."
DMACC will be making its ninth appearance in the national championship and its first since 2015. The Bears have finished 10th or higher each time they played in the national tournament, including a fourth-place finish in 20-15-16. The 2000-10 team finished fifth and the 2002-03 and 2014-15 teams were sixth and the 2007-08, 2008-09 and 2013-14 teams placed eighth. DMACC's 2006-07 team was 10th.
Lopez said she plans to give her team the weekend off before returning to practice on Nov. 13 to begin tournament preparations.
The double elimination tournament will continue through Nov. 18 with the championship match scheduled for 7 p.m. on Nov. 18.