MINNEAPOLIS — The No. 18 University of Minnesota volleyball program has earned an at-large bid in the 2025 NCAA Division I Volleyball Tournament. The Golden Gophers (22-9, 12-8 Big Ten) were placed in the Pittsburgh region and will take on Fairfield in round one. The first two rounds will take place on Friday, Dec. 5 and Saturday, Dec. 6, it was announced tonight during the selection show on ESPN.
Minnesota received a No. 4 seed and will take on Fairfield (25-5, 17-1 MAAC) in the second match of the evening, set for 7 p.m. The match will be preceded by No. 5 seeded Iowa State (22-7, 12-6 Big 12) against St. Thomas (21-9, 11-5 Summit League). The winner of each match will advance to the Second Round, set for 7 p.m. CT on Saturday evening. All matches will be played at Maturi Pavilion.
Should the Gophers advance out of the first two rounds, Minnesota is in the Pittsburgh Region and will travel to Pittsburgh, Pa., for the NCAA Regionals from Dec. 11-13. The Panthers (26-4, 18-2 ACC) are the tournament’s No. 4 overall seed.
Kansas City, Mo., is the host city for the NCAA Championships. The Final Four will take place Dec. 18-21 as the national semifinals and championship match will be played at the T-Mobile Center.
The 2025 season marks the 30th year the Golden Gophers have advanced to the NCAA tournament. Receiving an at-large bid this year, the Gophers have now advanced to the tournament in 11 straight seasons and 26 of the last 27 overall. As a program, Minnesota has had 30 straight winning seasons, dating back to the 1995 season.
Minnesota is one of eight Big Ten teams to make the 2025 NCAA tournament. Nebraska holds the No. 1 overall seed, the only Big Ten team set two hosts the first four rounds of the tournament.
In addition to the Gophers, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Penn State, Purdue, Indiana, Michigan, UCLA and USC made the tournament.
In all, the Gophers faced 15 teams that make up the field of 64. Along with the other Big Ten teams Minnesota faced this season, the Gophers also competed against Cal Poly, Loyola Chicago, Marquette, St. Thomas, South Florida, South Dakota State and Texas A&M made the tournament.
The Gophers enter the NCAA tournament with a 22-9 (12-8 Big Ten) overall record. They placed in a tie for sixth in the Big Ten behind only Nebraska (20-0), Wisconsin (17-3), Purdue (15-5) and USC (15-5).
TV and Tickets:
All first and second round matches will be streamed on ESPN+. Tickets for the general public can be purchased at gophersports.com starting Monday morning at 10 a.m. CT.
First and Second Round Schedule (at Maturi Pavilion):
Friday, Dec. 5:
4:30 p.m. CT – No. 5 Iowa State vs. St. Thomas
7 p.m. CT (or 30 minutes following the first match) – No. 4 Minnesota vs. Fairfield
Saturday, Dec. 6:
7 p.m. CT – Game One Winner vs. Game Two Winner
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