2010 NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Tournament
| 2010 NCAA Women's Division I Volleyball Tournament | |
|---|---|
2010 NCAA Final Four logo
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| Champions | Penn State (5th title) |
| Runner-up | California (1st title match) |
| Semifinalists |
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| Winning coach | Russ Rose (5th title) |
| Most outstanding player | Deja McClendon (Penn State) |
The 2010 NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Tournament began on December 2, 2010 and ended December 18, when Penn State swept California to win an unprecedented fourth straight NCAA title, making it their fifth overall. Penn State head coach Russ Rose became the first Division I coach to win five NCAA titles.
The biggest upset of the tournament occurred when Purdue swept top ranked Florida in 3 sets, recording their first win over a #1 team in program history. Despite holding 4 consecutive set points in the 1st set, Florida lost their 24-20 lead and eventually lost 28-26. Florida never seemed to regain their rhythm, as Purdue went up 8-0 in the second set and maintained a 10-point lead throughout the set, winning 25-15. Purdue went up early in the third set as well, and won 25-19, shocking the Gators who had only lost one match all season.
In the other semifinal, Illinois played Texas hard on their home floor, going up 2-1 in sets. However, Texas stormed back to win the fourth set easily and then took control of the fifth set, winning 15-11.
In the regional final, Purdue won the first set rather easily but lost their senior starting setter Jaclyn Hart to an apparent leg injury in the late stages of set 1. Hart did not end up returning in the match, as Texas dominated sets 2 and 3. Despite Purdue going up early and showing signs of life in what was the final set, Texas won the fourth set 27-25 to earn their third straight trip to the Final Four and a rematch of the 2009 NCAA Championship final with Penn State in the national semifinals.
Austin Regional All-Tournament Team
Having upset the 5th overall seed in the tournament in the 1st round, Missouri advanced to the Sweet 16 to face 12th seeded Duke. Duke won in four sets, and advanced to the Elite Eight, which was the first time that an ACC team made it past the Sweet 16.
Penn State downed Oklahoma in 3 sets, as senior All-American Blair Brown had 24 kills. In the regional final against Duke, Penn State won the first two sets rather easily, 25-19, 25-18, but Duke came back to win the third set 25-23. It was the first time since the 2006 tournament that Penn State lost a single set before the Final Four. In the fourth set, Penn State knocked off any chance of an upset, as they separated themselves early from Duke and won 25-17. Big Ten Freshman of the Year Deja McClendon had a career high 20 kills while Blair Brown added 16 kills. Penn State also extended their NCAA-record home court winning streak to 94 matches.
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