A region-by-region look at the 2025 DII women's volleyball championship

The 2025 DII women’s volleyball championship is set to serve things up on Thursday, Dec. 4. Eight regions will go at it to find the lone representative from each to move on the the national quarterfinals at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota on Dec. 11.

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Let's take a look around the bracket. 

Atlantic Region

Team to beat: Gannon. Quite frankly, when isn’t it Gannon. Since 2016, Gannon has been either the No. 1 or No. 2 seed in the Atlantic Region and has advanced to the national quarterfinals five times, including in three of the past four seasons. The Golden Knights lost to East Stroudsburg in the PSAC championship, but that should only fuel the fire. Gannon enters the tournament 24-7, are 10-1 at home this year and 54-7 over the past five years, so capturing the host seed was a very big edge.

Team to watch: East Stroudsburg. The Warriors are the No. 2 seed, so they are already a contender. However, this is just the Warriors fourth appearance in the tournament in program history. They have never won a tournament match, but now have a favorable matchup against the No. 7 Charleston (WV). A win there could carry over the momentum from taking down Gannon in the PSAC tournament championship.

Intriguing first-round matchup: Shepherd vs. Pitt-Johnstown. Both of these teams have been familiar faces in the Atlantic Region over the past several years. They have both also struggled mightily getting out of the first round. We know one of them will, so which will step up and move on?

Central Region

Team to beat: Nebraska-Kearney. The Lopers roll into the Central Region tournament winners of five in a row and a 29-3 record. Peyton Neff, one of our 15 players to watch earlier this season, had another monster year, repeating as MIAA setter of the year and earning her fourth-straight First-Team All-MIAA honors. The Lopers are 9-1 against tournament teams this year and seem like a team in control of their own destiny.

Team to watch: Concordia-St. Paul. The Golden Bears are nine-time national champions and have national runner-up campaigns in 2003 and 2022 as well. You have to all the way back to 2002 for the last time the Golden Bears didn’t win at least their first-round matchup in the DII women’s volleyball championship. Head coach Brady Starkey is one of the best to ever do it, and you can be sure this team is ready for another championship run.

Intriguing first-round matchup: St. Cloud State vs. Missouri Western. The NSIC is typically one of the toughest, if not the toughest, conference in DII women’s volleyball. That makes it all the more impressive that the Huskies have won two NSIC tournament titles in a row and four out of the last five. The Griffons are back in the tournament for a second-straight year, but they closed out the year with consecutive losses, one to UNK and the other a stunner to Pittsburg State in the quarterfinals of the MIAA tournament. That could spark this team to a surprising run or give the Huskies the boost they need to move on to Round 2.

East Region

Team to beat: Bentley. Why wouldn’t it be the Falcons? Bentley has been to the national quarterfinals two years in a row and enter the tournament at 24-4 riding a 20-game winning streak. The Falcons have loads of talent, with Elizabeth Blinn earning NE10 defensive player of the year honors and Tory Vitko earning NE10 setter of the year honors. Anything can happen in the East, but this looks like Bentley’s to lose.

Team to watch: American International. Not enough is made of the Yellow Jackets. Including this season, they have made the tournament all but once over the last decade with two trips to the national quarterfinals sprinkled in. Should they win their first-round matchup against Post, they have a tall order in Bentley likely ahead — a team that has beaten them three times this year. Still, when you have as much tournament experience as the Yellow Jackets, crazy things can happen.

Intriguing first-round matchup: Mercy vs. Molloy. These two are no strangers, meeting most recently on Nov. 22 in the ECC championship match. They have faced each other three times this season and Mercy has won all three, mostly in dominating fashion by a total score of 9-2. Can one team beat their conference rival four times in the same season? This will be an interesting one to watch, because the winner has a chance to make it to the East Region finals.

Midwest Region

Team to beat: Ferris State. You can really flip a coin here between UMSL and the Bulldogs. The two have faced off against each other in each of the last four tournaments, splitting the series. Of course, UMSL’s two wins came in the Midwest Region finals, helping the Tritons to back-to-back national quarterfinals in 2022 and 2023. That’s why it seems like the Bulldogs turn to go back-to-back, with another potential UMSL showdown looming.

Team to watch: Wayne State (MI). This is a kind of feel-good story, so keep an eye on the Warriors. Wayne State (MI) defeated national power Ferris State to win its first-ever GLIAC tournament championship, securing the auto bid to the tournament. It is just the Warriors fourth trip to the DII women’s volleyball championship, and first since 2021. They have never won a tournament game. Riding on the momentum of history, perhaps more is in the making.

Intriguing first-round matchup: Ohio Dominican vs. Rockhurst. You have to go all the way back to 2013 for the last time that Rockhurst missed a DII women’s volleyball championship. Ohio Dominican is the polar opposite, not appearing once over the same span. Now, the Panthers have the No. 2 seed on the heels of their first-ever G-MAC championship. That should make for some interesting volleyball.

South Region

Team to beat: Tampa. Do you know how many undefeated teams there are in DII women’s volleyball right now? The answer is one, and that is these Tampa Spartans. The Spartans have made the South Region finals four years in a row, advancing to the national quarterfinals twice over that span, while winning their fourth national championship in 2021. After the retirement of long-time legendary head coach Chris Catanach, Brian Imperiale is looking to add his name to Tampa’s illustrious lore.

Team to watch: Lynn. Of course you need to keep an eye on the Fighting Knights. They are the defending national champions. They had a brutal close to the season, ending on a 3-5 run, but did close with two wins in a row, one of those over tournament-bound Palm Beach Atlantic. They will have a tough matchup against a UAH team back in the tournament for the first time in four years, but Lynn will be looking to defend their crown.

Intriguing first-round matchup: West Florida vs. Palm Beach Atlantic. The Argonauts are as consistent as any team in DII women’s volleyball, making their 19th-straight appearance in the tournament. Palm Beach Atlantic is no strangers to the postseason itself; however, it has been a few years. The Sailfish had a massive turnaround this year, finishing 22-9 one year after an 8-22 season. This should be a good one.

Southeast Region

Team to beat: Wingate. For the record, this is a scary pick. The Bulldogs are a great team, sitting at 28-1 and winners of 27 in a row. Combine that with the fact that they are 59-4 over the past two seasons and the defending Southeast Region champions, it seems like a no-brainer of a pick, right? Wrong — repeats in the Southeast are a rarity, so maybe the team to beat is No. 2 Lenoir-Rhyne or No. 3 Anderson (SC), two of the teams that have filled the national quarterfinals slot on the off years that Wingate doesn’t make it. Still, this team is very good and could be the one to change the course.

Team to watch: Flagler. When Wingate has advanced to the quarterfinals (2018, 2022 and 2024) the Bulldogs have been the No. 1 seed. The other years over that span have been complete wild cards with No. 4 and No. 6 seeds advancing. So, let’s watch Flagler. The Saints have tournament experience, especially against first-round opponent Carson-Newman, which they beat the last time the two faced in tournament action in 2022. It is a bit of a deep sleeper, but the PBC champs are rolling in hot.

Intriguing first-round matchup: Anderson (SC) vs. Augusta. These two are annual tournament attendees and have some tourney history. The last time the two faced in the tournament was in 2023 in the Southeast Region finals when No. 4 Anderson swept No. 2 Augusta to advance to the national quarterfinals. We have a little grudge match against to tournament regulars.

South Central Region

Team to beat: MSU Denver. Is this finally the year of the Roadrunners? MSU Denver is red hot, entering their 25th-straight tournament winners of 17 in a row. They are the host seed for the third time in program history. The previous two times, the Roadrunners made it all the way to the South Central finals but then wound up losing before making it to the ball. They have the RMAC defensive player of the year in Alyssa Boyte and the RMAC freshman of the year in Karyna Werley, so talent isn’t a question.

Team to watch: West Texas A&M. The Buffs are a tournament powerhouse and the only other South Central Region team in the national top 25. The Buffs made back-to-back national championship matches in 2022 and 2023, winning it all in 2022. November and December is a time when West Texas A&M shines, so all teams should be on watch for the Buffs.

Intriguing first-round matchup: Angelo State vs. Lubbock Christian. This is the Chaps first trip to the DII women’s volleyball championship, riding the heels of a historic run to their first-ever LSC tournament finals. There, they lost to Angelo State in straight sets. This is a rematch just days in the making.

West Region

Team to beat: Simon Fraser. This is a brutal part of the bracket with six teams in the AVCA top 25 and the two others — Cal State San Bernardino and Central Washington — just outside receiving votes. The West has sent two teams to the last two national championship matches, and each of those teams (San Francisco State and Cal State LA) were somewhat of a surprise. That’s why No. 2 Simon Fraser is the pick over No. 1 Point Loma. To Simon Fraser’s advantage, there are five GNAC teams in the regional tournament, so it has plenty of familiarity.

Team to watch: Fresno Pacific. The Sunbirds are a strong team but have a very tough first-round matchup. Western Washington returns to the tournament for the first time in two years, but they had one of the best resumes in DII from 2012-22. Fresno State hopes to squash any hopes of starting another run. The Sunbirds enter the tournament 25-1, having redeemed its lone loss of the season to Point Loma in the PacWest championship.

Intriguing first-round matchup: Alaska Anchorage vs. Alaska Fairbanks. The battle of The Last Frontier. The Nanooks are making their first-ever trip to the DII women’s volleyball tournament after going 23-5 and capturing a share of their first-ever GNAC title. The Seawolves have dominated the all-time series with their in-state rivals; however, Alaska Fairbanks has won the last four, including dominating both in 2025 by a score of 3-1.