Former Indiana Preps In The D1 Tournament, Part 2

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There are plenty of reasons to watch the NCAA tournament, which starts today in some locations. The rest start tomorrow, and a number of Indiana-based athletes dot many top rosters. Here are some more to cheer on. (Note: all rankings listed are according to the AVCA Top 25 poll dated November 28)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>#4 Louisville (26-2), v Samford (19-12), 7pm Friday EST</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As a number one seed in their quadrant, the Cardinals have the opportunity to host the first four rounds of the tournament in their own backyard. If they get out of the first two rounds, the KFC Yum! Center will be home, and what a home crowd it will be. First and foremost, however, are the Bulldogs from Birmingham, Alabama. Redshirt freshman <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='101178' first='Cara' last='Cresse'] ('21 Blackhawk Christian, 6-6 MB)</strong> has seen a ton of time as the second middle, and should see more of it when the tournament starts. Off the bench, junior <strong>Ceci Rush ('20 Providence, 5-9 DS)</strong> is a serving sub that is so popular with fans that she has her own cheer when she enters. (Ce-ciiiiiiiii)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>#10 Ohio State (19-9), v Tennessee State (19-15), 7:30pm Friday EST</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Buckeyes, despite their late-season slip-ups, earned a three-seed and will host this weekend in the Covelli Center. We wish the Tigers the best of luck in their first-ever tournament bid, but this is a Buckeyes team that needed a break going into this weekend, and they will be well-rested come tomorrow night. Big Ten Libero of the Year <strong>Kylie Murr ('19 Yorktown, 5-6 DS/L)</strong> is the driving force behind all of Ohio State's success over her years in attendance in Columbus, and will be leaned on even more so as the tournament moves deeper into December.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>#8 Minnesota (20-8), v Southeastern Louisiana (25-7), 8pm Friday EST</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Golden Gophers had an incredible run at the end of the season, winning seven out of eight to close it out. That run included wins over #8 OSU and #5 Nebraska, both of which were on the road. In her typical nonchalant fashion, <strong>Melanie Shaffmaster ('20 New Castle, 6-3 S)</strong> is running an offense that includes the Big Ten Player of the Year in <strong>Taylor Landfair. </strong>Maturi Pavilion should be rocking Friday, with either Florida State or Northern Iowa waiting in the wings.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>#5 Stanford (24-4), v Pepperdine (19-10), 10pm Friday EST</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>If there was ever a top seed that might get a push in the first round, it's the Waves from Malibu. No worries, however, as six-rotation primary-passing outside <strong>Caitie Baird ('19 Perry Meridian, 6-3 OH)</strong> has had her best year thus far in her junior year. Averaging four points per set, Miss Baird has steadily directed the Cardinal to their best record since the title run of 2019.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>#19 Purdue (20-10), v Tennessee (17-13), @ Louisville, 4pm Friday EST</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Although tickets to this match are labeling the start time as 4:30, anyone in attendance should get there early, as this is the one 1st round matchup that should be fun to watch. The Boilermakers have a ton of home-grown talent, and have always recruited the Hoosier State well. Four Indiana residents are seeing major playing time this fall. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='85670' first='Raven' last='Colvin'] ('21, Heritage Christian, 6-1 MB) </strong>is one of the starting middles and is the easy leader in blocks for the squad. She earned second-team All-Big Ten honors. <strong>Maddie Schermerhorn ('19 West Noble, 5-10 DS/L)</strong> also earned second-team honors, wearing the special jersey nearly all season. The next in line to possibly wear the libero jersey, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='85667' first='Ali' last='Hornung'] ('21 Providence, 5-10 DS/OH)</strong>, is an important three-rotation DS that can attack if needed. Last and not least, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='85813' first='Eva' last='Hudson'] ('22 Bishop Dwenger, 6-1 OH)</strong> earned Big Ten All-Freshman Team, Big Ten First Team and Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors while being a primary-passing six-rotation stud for the Boilermakers. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->