Vandals earn berth in NCAAs

Debbie Buchanan knew her Idaho volleyball team was a longshot to earn a second-consecutive at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament.

The Vandals (17-12) finished sixth in the Big West Conference with a 9-9 record and lost five of their last eight matches – hardly the kind of finish on which post-season resumes are built.

Yet Buchanan refused to abandon hope that the NCAA selection committee would reward her team for playing in one of the most respected conferences in the country. And on Sunday, her faith was rewarded when UI was paired against 7th-seeded Washington (24-2) in a first-round tournament matchup that will be played at 5:30 p.m. on Friday at UW’s Bank of America Arena in Seattle.

“We were surprised,” admitted Buchanan, who watched the selection show on ESPNews with several of her players who had returned early from Thanksgiving break. “But we had talked to our players and told them we thought there was a slim chance we might still get in because of the strength of our conference and the parity of its teams.

“When it was announced that we were in, the kids freaked out and got excited, just like they always do.”

The Vandals were one of six Big West teams to make the tournament, and it was probably their regular-season win over BWC regular-season champion and 13th seeded UC Santa Barbara that earned them another NCAA berth.

It was thought that Eastern Washington (20-10), the regular-season Big Sky Conference champion and a 3-1 winner over Idaho earlier this fall, might also have a chance for an at-large berth. But the Eagles were swept by both BYU and Utah on the road last weekend.

As a result, Big Sky tournament champion Sacramento State will be the league’s only representative in this year’s NCAAs.