TMU paired with No. 13 Corban (Ore.) in NAIA Opening Round

After winning the Golden State Athletic Conference East Division title and earning one of the conference's two automatic berths to the national tournament, TMU Women's Volleyball has been paired up with No. 13 Corban University (Ore.) in the NAIA National Championship Opening Round.
 
The Mustangs will travel up to Salem, Oregon to take on the Warriors on Saturday at 1 p.m., with the winner advancing to the NAIA Women's Volleyball National Championship in Sioux City, Iowa.
 
"We are very excited to have the opportunity to play Corban in the Opening Round," Master's head coach Annett Davis said. "For many of our athletes, this is the first time they've gotten this far collegiately."
 
TMU (10-3 overall, 8-2 GSAC), which is receiving votes in the latest NAIA Coaches' Poll, is making its fourth-ever trip to the national tournament and first since 2018.
 
Corban (12-4, 10-4 CCC) finished second in the Cascade Collegiate Conference regular season standings, before winning the CCC Tournament championship, defeating previously undefeated No. 8 Eastern Oregon in four sets.
 
The Warriors are making their fifth-straight and fifth-ever appearance in the national tournament. Corban has reached at least the Round of 16 in each of the past five seasons.
 
The Warriors had four players selected to the All-CCC Team in defensive specialist Kealani Ontai and outside hitters Rylee Troutman, Avari Ridgway and Ally Tow. Troutman was also honored as the CCC Freshman of the Year.
 
As evidenced by three outside hitters earning All-Conference recognition, Corban sports a potent offense that ranks 10th in the NAIA in assists per game (12.6) and 16th in both hitting percentage (.228) and kills per game (13.4). That offense will go up against a formidable Mustang defense, which ranks 24th nationally with 2.2 blocks per game.
 
"We'll get a chance to watch Corban in action later this week, but for now we know how important it is to focus on ourselves and our own skills," Davis said. "Our Achilles' heel has not been other teams; it's been ourselves.
 
"When we are playing together as a unit, are focused on our side of the court and are executing the skills of the game as well as I know we can, we can beat any team," Davis said.
 
Master's is 2-2 all-time against Corban, but the Warriors are on a two-match winning streak in the series. Most recently, Corban defeated TMU in Pool Play at the 2018 NAIA Women's Volleyball National Championship.
 
Saturday's match will be live streamed at: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/corban/