East Peoria, Ill. - It may be a more 'known' event in other sports, but regardless, the anticipation of gathering around your devices to see where your team is playing in the National Tournament breeds the same excitement for all those involved. That's what was on board for the seventh-ranked ICC volleyball team (31-10) on Thursday morning. On the NJCAA Network's Selection Show, the full 20-team field was revealed for the tournament, taking place November 15th-18th at Alliant Energy Powerhouse Arena in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The Cougars were presented with the eighth seed, and will take on the ninth seed, Richard Bland, winners of the 2022 National Tournament. The match will be at 1PM on Wednesday, November 15th. 

HEY, WE KNOW THEM
Perhaps a testament to ICC's strength of schedule, an impressive eight of the 20 teams (40%) were on the Cougars' schedule in 2023. ICC would go a combined (7-4) against #3 Parkland, #4 Johnson County, #5 Iowa Central, #6 Grand Rapids, #7 Kirkwood, #10 Heartland, #11 Des Moines Area, and #20 Sauk Valley. The seven wins came against Iowa Central (1), Kirkwood (1), Heartland (2), Des Moines Area (1), and Sauk Valley (2). 

GET TO KNOW THE STATESMEN
As mentioned, Richard Bland had quite the 2022, 'upsetting' two higher-seeded teams in #4 Iowa Central and #1 Johnson County for the national title. 

The Statesmen did lose tournament MVP and setter Karagyn Durco to NCAA D2 UNC-Pembroke, and leading attacker Hailey Hopkins (359 kills) to NCAA D2 Shaw University.

This year, the Statesmen are (31-6), on a seven-match win streak, and return four players from that Championship-winning team.

Perhaps the most notable among that group is sophomore outside Sarah Heath. Heath was the only Statesmen player to trail Hopkins in kills a year ago with 341, and has an impressive 565 kills in 2023, bringing her career total to 906. 

Another returner is Leilani Goggin. The sophomore outside had 319 kills, a mark good for third on the team. She's already at 311 entering the national tournament. 

Jadyn Brown, a sophomore outside, looks to be one of the leaders in the service game, with her 60 aces good for fourth on the team. 

Georgia Alexander, who did not play in 2022, but was on the roster. Her time this year has been limited as well, with two matches played and three digs. 

HOW ABOUT THE COUGARS
It's a saying that's been used repeatedly of late with the Cougars. They're playing quality volleyball at the right time. ICC is currently on an 11-match win streak, with four top-20 ranked wins over that stretch, including two over #10 Heartland. They've also defeated #7 Kirkwood and #5 Iowa Central this season, and also nearly took down #4 Johnson County, falling in five sets. 

Emily Allison (399 kills), Kaitlyn Baumann (333 kills), and Hannah Tellor (301 kills) all have broken the 300-kill mark to pace the attack.

Maris Barclay (674 assists) and Shelby Emich (476 assists) are both well over 400 to pace that category. 

ICC libero Emily Cronkhite has become one of the nation's best when it comes to digs. Cronkhite presently has 842 on the season, a mark that's good for 2nd in the country, trailing only fellow Region 24 opponent in Heartland's Kennedy Conrad. 

Three different players are close to or over 100 total blocks on the season, with Baumann (147), Amber Brawley (101), and Tellor (98) leading the way. 

WHO ELSE IS THERE - FULL TOURNAMENT PAIRINGS
The tournament, as mentioned, feeds 20 teams. 16 are District Champions, and the other four are at-large bids. They will all play in a double-elimination format on route to the National Title Match. Below are the full first round pairings.

2023 NJCAA D2 Volleyball National Tournament
Wednesday, November 15th
M1 | 9AM | Court 1 | #16 Rock Valley vs. #17 North Dakota SCS
M2 | 9AM | Court 2 | #13 Gulf Coast State vs. #20 Sauk Valley
M3 | 11AM | Court 1 | #15 Lansing vs. #18 Walters State
M4 | 11AM | Court 2 | #14 Wallace State vs. #19 Harford
M5 | 1PM | Court 1 | #8 ICC COUGARS vs. #9 Richard Bland
M6 | 1PM | Court 2 | #5 Iowa Central vs. #12 Pensacola State
M7 | 3:30PM | Court 1 | #7 Kirkwood vs. #10 Heartland
M8 | 3:30PM | Court 2 | #6 Grand Rapids vs. #11 Des Moines Area
M9 | 5:30PM | Court 1 | #1 Cowley vs. Winner M1
M10 | 5:30PM | Court 2 | #4 Johnson County vs. Winner M2
M11 | 7:30PM | Court 1 | #2 Scottsdale vs. Winner M3
M12 | 7:30PM | Court 2 | #3 Parkland vs. Winner M4

HOW TO FOLLOW ALONG
The entirety of the national tournament will be broadcast live on the NJCAA Network for a fee. Fans can pay $12 for a "Day Pass", $25 for a "Tournament Pass", or $100 for an "All-Sport Nationals Pass". You can visit the NJCAA Network at THIS LINK. Also, we will have full comprehensive coverage of each match the Cougars play at Nationals, with a story, stats, and quotes coming in the near vicinity of each match's conclusion.