EAST STROUDSBURG – The East Stroudsburg University volleyball team is headed back to the NCAA Division II Tournament for the second consecutive season as the Warriors received the seventh seed during Monday night's Women's Volleyball Selection Show.
ESU will battle second-seeded Gannon next Thursday in the Atlantic Region bracket. The eight-team regional will be hosted by No. 1 seed Wheeling on Dec. 2-4. The start times for all four matches on Thursday are still to be determined.
The winner of Thursday's first-round matchup between the Warriors and Golden Knights will face the winner of No. 3 seed Shepherd and No. 6 seed West Virginia State on Friday. 64 teams from eight regions across the country will compete in this year's tournament and the final eight teams advance to the Bob Martinez Athletics Center in Tampa, Florida on Dec. 9-11.
ESU (18-10) was ranked seventh in the final regional rankings that were released on Nov. 17 and maintained their position in the poll following their 3-1 loss to Clarion in the PSAC semifinals.
The Warriors were one of 41 teams to receive an at-large bid into the NCAA DII tournament. The other teams in Atlantic Regional include No. 4 Edinboro, No. 5 Clarion, and No. 8 Fayetteville State. The PSAC had five teams punch their ticket in the eight-team bracket, with Edinboro and Clarion playing in the first round.
Thursday's match will be the first meeting this season between the Warriors and Golden Knights.