OPENING ROUND PREVIEW: Crusaders look to even series

The Crusaders are making their 19th appearance in the National Championship field, the second-most appearances behind Georgetown College (Ky.) with 21. The Blue and Gold are one of 26 teams that qualified for the 2019 championships.

Madonna enters the tournament having won 9-of-11 with the two losses coming to Aquinas College (Mich.). The Blue and Gold are led by senior Jodie Kelly who ranks fourth in the NAIA in kills per game (4.750) and 27th in total kills (328). Other offensive difference-makers to watch are Kacie Stoneburner and DJ Sargent who each tallied more than 100 kills this season. Stoneburner was second on the team with 123 kills while Sargent is third with 104. 

Jordyn Dawson (6.02 assists per game) and Betsy Cook (4.59 assists per game) will set the table for MU with Stoneburner also able to fill in at setter for MU. Olivia Sweeney leads the back row with 322 digs while Kelly (221 digs), Dawson (120 digs) and Jamie Ciacico (96 digs) will be key pieces as well. At the net, Emily Stewart and Dawson lead the team in blocks with 121 combined from the middle.

The North Star Athletic Association (NSAA) Tournament champions, the V-Hawks enter the tournament having won their last three matches and 11-of-12 with the lone loss coming at No. 7 Northwestern (Iowa). They also were a tournament contestant in 2019 and are making their eighth tournament appearance. 

Viterbo is led by Maya Roberts who has tallied 22 kills this season at a .248 clip. Three other V-Hawks have at least 100 kills in Kenzie Winker (194), Grace Rhode (154) and Katie Frohmader (145). Lauryn Sobasky distributes the offense from the setter position as she has 347 assists this season (4.75 per game) while Abbey Johnson (259 assists) and Chloe Jakscht (183 assists) also have experience. 

Adrianna Reinhart is the libero with 329 digs this season (4.51 per set) while three other players have at least 140 digs. Rekha Drevlow leads the defense at the net with 55 blocks this season while Mariah Calkins has 46.

Viterbo leads the all-time series 2-1, winning the last two meetings 3-0.

The last meeting was in Livonia on Sept. 9, 2016. The teams have postseason history with the V-Hawks sweeping MU in Sioux City, Iowa in 2014. 

There are 48-teams that earned a bid to the event which will begin on Saturday with 24 opening-round matches across the country. Winners from each opening round will advance to the national championship final site at the Tyson Events Center in Sioux City, Iowa. Two days of pool play kickoff the event on April 27-28 with the top team from each pool advancing to the elimination bracket on April 29.  the semifinals will be played on April 30 and the national champion will be crowned May 1 with the first serve set for 7 p.m. CST on ESPN3.

The field features 36 automatic qualifiers and 12 at-large selections. The automatic berths are determined by regular-season champions or runner-ups, conference tournament title winners or runner-ups, or by conference selection. The remaining at-large bids were determined by the final regular-season Women's Volleyball Coaches' Top 25 Poll announced Monday. 

The NAIA Network – the association's official video-streaming home – will broadcast all matches excluding the semifinals and championship matches live at the 2020 NAIA Volleyball National Championship final site in Sioux City, Iowa. The video platform, powered by Stretch Internet, allows users access to live video, statistics, and social interaction on a number of devices, including mobile. Single-day passes can be purchased for $9.95, while a pool play pass is $24.95 (April 27-28) and a championship package is available at $39.95.