Story Courtesy of Stevens Athletics

Hoboken, N.J. – The Stevens Institute of Technology women's volleyball team is headed to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, for the NCAA Tournament, as announced during Monday afternoon's NCAA Selection Show.

The Ducks, who captured their sixth consecutive Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom Championship with a thrilling 3-2 win over Misericordia University on Saturday, will face host Carnegie Mellon University at 7:00 p.m. Thursday.
Otterbein and Wittenberg open pod play at 11:30 a.m., followed by Wisconsin-Eau Claire and St. Mary's (Md.) at 2:00 p.m. Hope and Southern Virginia meet in the 4:30 p.m. match, with Stevens set to take the court in the final contest of the day. The winners of the Hope/Southern Virginia and Stevens/Carnegie Mellon matches will square off Friday at 7:00 p.m., while the Wisconsin-Eau Claire/St. Mary's winner will meet the Otterbein/Wittenberg winner at 4:30 p.m.

Stevens rallied from a 2-1 deficit against Misericordia in the conference final, hitting .560 with just one error in the fourth set before taking the fifth 15-13. The Ducks, who trailed 9-8 in the deciding frame, swung the momentum with a 6-1 run. The Cougars fought off three match points before MAC Freedom Rookie of the Year Alyssa O'Neal put down a set from Molly Harris to clinch the victory. Vivian Lisboa was named the MAC Freedom Tournament Most Valuable Player after totaling 16 kills and 10 blocks across the Ducks' two tournament matches. In addition to her Rookie of the Year recognition, O'Neal earned Second Team All-MAC Freedom honors. Lisboa was a First Team selection, while Ella Boland and Sarah Bolduc joined O'Neal on the Second Team. Molly Harris and Lianna Schmieder added Honorable Mention accolades.

Carnegie Mellon is making its fifth NCAA appearance under seventh-year head coach Anne Bock and its 11th overall in program history. The Tartans, who won the program's first UAA Championship this fall, enter the tournament with a 24-8 record and have faced nine nationally ranked opponents. Seven CMU players have recorded at least 100 kills, led by Kate Giang's 337, while Zoe Gavros has anchored the defense with 501 digs.