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The #18 Grand Valley State volleyball team returns to the NCAA Elite Eight on Thursday (Dec. 4), as the Midwest Region champion Lakers face #12 Wingate in the tournament's opening match at 12:00 p.m. GVSU advanced to the Elite Eight after sweeping all three regional opponents in Allendale on Nov. 20-22.
 
Grand Valley State (26-5) and Wingate (34-2) - who have never faced each other on the volleyball court - open Thursday's four quarterfinal matches. Sonoma State and Southwest Minnesota State follow at 2:30 p.m., Wheeling Jesuit and Tampa play at 5:00 p.m., while New Haven and Arkansas Fort Smith close the first day with a 7:30 p.m. match.
 
The Lakers are back in Louisville, which was the site of the 2010 Elite Eight and NCAA Fall Festival. That was also the last time GVSU advanced to the national quarterfinals. In 2010, the Lakers dropped a 3-0 decision to national runner-up, Tampa, in the opening round.
 
Overall, this is the ninth time in school history that Grand Valley State has won the regional championship and earned an Elite Eight berth. In the previous eight trips, GVSU owns a 5-3 record in the national quarterfinal round. The Lakers own a very respectable 7-7 all-time record in the national tournament, including winning the 2005 Division II National Championship in Kearney, Neb.
 
To advance to this year's Elite Eight, Grand Valley State hosted the Midwest Region Tournament - but in an odd twist, the Lakers were just the #3 seed in the region. GVSU was the only non-#1 seed in Division II this season to host its region's tournament. But playing on its home floor, Grand Valley State played its best volleyball of the season - and at the most opportune time.
 
In the opening round, the Lakers exacted revenge on Missouri S&T - the only team to sweep GVSU this season - by notching a 3-0 sweep over the Miners. That set up a showdown with rival Ferris State in the semifinals. Grand Valley State won three tight sets (25-22, 26-24, 25-23) over the #17 Bulldogs to advance to the championship match. In those victories over Missouri S&T and Ferris State, the Lakers eliminated two of the only four teams that defeated GVSU earlier in the year.
 
Just one win away from clinching the regional championship, Grand Valley State - playing on its home floor - knew what was at stake. After falling in the 2013 regional title match - also on their home floor - the Lakers recognized the opportunity. GVSU came out and convincingly won the Midwest Region title over Rockhurst in another 3-0 sweep.
 
Grand Valley State was the only Division II team to not lose a single set during the regional tournament, going a perfect 9-for-9 in sets played in the opening three rounds. The Lakers have now won 21 matches by 3-0 scores.
 
In NCAA Tournament play, GVSU is 36-13 in 15 total appearances in postseason play. The Lakers' last win at the Elite Eight level came in a 3-0 victory over Armstrong Atlantic in 2008 in St. Paul, Minn.
 
Since starting the season with a 2-2 overall record, Grand Valley State has posted a 24-3 record. GVSU went 17-1 in conference play to earn a share of the GLIAC regular season title. The Lakers went 14-1 inside the Fieldhouse Arena, are 8-1 in true road games, and 4-3 in neutral site contests.
 
Wingate captured the Southeast Regional championship with a five-set victory over Armstrong Atlantic. The top-seeded Bulldogs swept Erskine and defeated Georgia Regents Augusta in four sets before winning the regional title. It is the fourth Elite Eight appearance for Wingate in the program's history. Wingate was the only regional champion this year to win its title in five sets.
 
With a 34-2 record, the Bulldogs had three long win streaks separated by just the two losses. Wingate won its first six matches of the year and is currently riding a nine-match win streak entering Thursday's contest.  In between their two losses, the Bulldogs won 19 consecutive matches from mid-September until the end of October.
 
Both of Wingate's losses came at home and both come in five sets. On Sept. 13, Armstrong Atlantic topped the Bulldogs, 3-2, while Carson-Newman did the same on Nov. 1 with a five-set victory.
 
Overall, Wingate is 25-0 in three-set matches, 7-0 in four-setters, and 2-2 in five-set contests. With a 21-1 conference record, the Bulldogs were 15-2 at home, 12-0 in road matches, and 7-0 at neutral sites.
 
If Grand Valley State wins on Thursday over the Bulldogs, the Lakers would advance to Friday's semifinals against the winner of the Sonoma State - Southwest Minnesota State quarterfinal. Friday's match would be at 3:00 p.m. The Division II National Championship match takes place on Saturday at 4:00 p.m.
 
GVSU is looking for its sixth berth in the NCAA Final Four, having also reached that stage in 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, and 2008.