SAN DIEGO — When the USD Toreros Women Volleyball team heard their name announced on the NCAA Selection Show, they were ready to take on the nation.
"They are more than ready for this opportunity," USD Head Coach Jen Petrie said. She added, "It's nice to finally have it arrive. We've been looking forward to it and not wanting to get ahead of ourselves all season but this is you know, this is the most exciting part of the year."
The Toreros will host Northern Colorado on December 1 at the Jenny Craig Pavilion. It will be the first time they have hosted an NCAA tournament game since 2013.
They will also be riding a 24-match winning streak. CBS 8 asked members of the team if the streak will be a distraction?
"I wouldn't call it a distraction," West Coast Conference Player of the Year Katie Lukes said. "I think it's just a motivator. I think it's funny because I even said the other day, I can't even fathom the thought of losing because it's just been so normal to win. I think we're tough as nails. We've had a lot of tough matches. Our last three were pretty tough."
After defeating BYU in their final regular season match. The Toreros finished a perfect 18-0 in conference play. They also swept the season awards with the WCC Player of the Year, Setter of the Year, Libero of the Year and Coach of the Year.
"We're so excited," said setter Gabby Blossom. "The NCAA Tournament is what you dream of as a little kid. Just so excited. I can't believe it's already here. This season flew by but we're so ready and so excited."
The Toreros received a number two seed in the tournament. That means the competition committee is ranking USD as one of the top five to eight teams in the country, but they have been ranked number two in the country for most of the year. Coach Petrie says, the seeding is what it is.
"In our own minds, yeah, we're one of the top four teams in the country right now. Our record, our resume, the teams we played, the strength of the opponents. I mean, it's all there for us. We knew that it was going to be out of our control where they seed us. Whatever it is we're going to tackle it head on."
The furthest the Toreros have gone in postseason play is the Sweet 16. They believe they have the team to make it well past that this year.
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