Fayette, Mo. – The No. 9 Central Methodist volleyball team is making their third consecutive NAIA National Championship Opening Round appearance. The Eagles will host Cottey College Saturday, April 17 at 5:00 p.m. in Puckett Field House, with the winner advancing to the Final Site in Sioux City, Iowa.
Central enters the national tournament with a 13-6 overall record while the Comets are 10-16.
The Eagles claimed their spot in the dance after finishing as the Heart Conference Tournament runner-up this past March. So far this season, CMU has played nine games against five ranked teams. The Eagles split matches against No. 19 Ottawa and (RV) MidAmerica Nazarene, defeated No. 14 Grand View, and dropped a game against No. 6 Missouri Baptist and three games against No. 2 Park.
Central is ranked in the top 30 in four different statistical categories. Senior Grace Stumbaugh is No. 7 in the NAIA in hitting percentage (0.355).
Cottey College is making its first-ever NAIA National Tournament appearance after claiming the Association of Independent Institutions Tournament Championship.
Tickets for the NAIA Opening round will go live on Wednesday afternoon at https://www.cmueagles.com/fan_zone/tickets .
Visiting fans need to contact head coach Marla Kannady for information on how to access tickets.
WATCH:
https://www.heartconferencenetwork.com/cmu/
LIVE STATS:
OPENING ROUND PAIRINGS:
#TakeFlight
