Defending champion T-Birds enter nationals as second seed, will face host McMaster in quarter-finals

The Manitoba Bisons, who won the Canada West championship with a 3-1 win over UBC on Saturday night, are the top seed heading into the 2024 U SPORTS Women’s Volleyball Championship. U SPORTS announced the seeding on Sunday for the 2024 championship, which runs from Friday to Sunday at the Burridge Gymnasium on the campus of McMaster University in Hamilton.

Championship website: https://usports.ca/en/championships/volleyball/f

The complete field, in seeding order, is as follows:

1. Manitoba Bisons (CW champions, 20-4 regular season, 5-0 playoffs)
2. UBC Thunderbirds (CW finalists, 22-2, 4-1)
3. Brock Badgers (OUA champions, 18-2, 3-0)
4. Alberta Pandas (CW finalists, 18-6, 3-2)
5. Montréal Carabins (RSEQ champions, 17-4, 4-1)
6. Acadia Axewomen (AUS champions: 15-5, 4-2)
7. McMaster Marauders (hosts, 15-5, 2-1)
8. Saint Mary’s Huskies (AUS finalists, 14-6, 3-3)

In women’s volleyball, the eight participating teams are seeded with the requirements that conference playoff results be respected, that conference champions be seeded no lower than No. 6, and that first-round conference matchups be avoided for the conference finalists.

The quarterfinals will be played on Friday, as follows: (all times Eastern)

• Noon: No. 8 Saint Mary’s vs. No. 1 Manitoba
• 2 p.m.: No. 5 Montréal vs. No. 4 Alberta
• 6 p.m.: No. 2 UBC at No. 7 McMaster
• 8 p.m.: No. 6 Acadia vs. No. 3 Brock

Consolation games will take place on Saturday at noon and 2 p.m., with the semifinals set for 6 and 8 p.m. On Sunday, the fifth-place game is set for noon, with the bronze medal game following at 2 p.m. and the championship game at 6 p.m.

Tickets for the event are currently on sale on the U SPORTS website.

All 11 games from the event will be broadcast live on CBC Sports digital platforms in English. In French, the games will be carried on Radio Canada’s digital platforms (French). The full schedule will be available throughout the tournament at usports.ca/en/broadcast.