By Joey Johnston for the NCAA
From start to finish, the Tampa Bay area has become the epicenter of NCAA Division I volleyball this season.
The timing couldn’t be more perfect.
When the Tampa Bay Sports Commission hosted the Road 2 Tampa Bay Invitational in late August — bringing together the Florida Gators, Penn State Nittany Lions, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and host South Florida Bulls — the two-night tip-off event attracted more than 13,500 fans to downtown Tampa and the USF campus.
It was a prelude to the NCAA Volleyball Championship, which heads to Tampa’s Amalie Arena on December 14-17. TBSC executive director Rob Higgins said the hosting organization will be “laser-focused’’ on setting the NCAA Volleyball championship match attendance record (surpassing the 18,755 in 2021 when Wisconsin defeated Nebraska in Columbus, Ohio).
“We love the college volleyball trajectory and this season should be a remarkable journey,’’ Higgins said. “For our community to be the backdrop for the start and finish of the season, it’s truly phenomenal.’’
And truly historic.
A few days after the season began in Tampa, the Nebraska Cornhuskers hosted “Volleyball Day In Nebraska,’’ an outdoor double-header at Memorial Stadium that attracted 92,003 fans, the largest crowd to witness a women’s sports event. Tickets were $25 for adults, but reached as much as $400 on the secondary market.
In December, the championship match will be shown on ABC-TV for the first time. Instead of the traditional Saturday night window, the final will be played on Sunday afternoon, likely providing unprecedented exposure.
“Adding ABC to the lineup will enhance our efforts to grow a sport with incredible talent and an already extremely loyal fanbase,’’ ESPN senior director of programming and acquisitions Dan Margulis said.
In all, Margulis said more than 2,500 NCAA Division I women’s volleyball matches will be shown this season on ESPN platforms, including the streaming ESPN+ service.
“This is what every girl before us dreamed of for so many years — and we get to live it out,’’ Penn State middle blocker Taylor Trammell said. “I can’t even believe (what happened) in Nebraska. And by being on ABC, I think it shows that this sport is here to stay.’’
“I think we’re living in the best time for women’s volleyball,’’ Florida coach Mary Wise said. “The number of eyes watching us both in person and on TV, it…
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