The Big West champion University of Hawaii women’s volleyball team will face LSU in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday in Stanford, Calif.

The 64-team NCAA Tournament bracket was announced today and the Rainbow Wahine drew the eighth seed in the 16-team Stanford Quarter. The host and Pac-12 champion Cardinal will take on Pepperdine of the West Coast Conference in the other first-round match in the subregional at Maples Pavilion on Friday. The winners meet on Saturday.

The UH-LSU meeting will gave Rainbow Wahine middle blocker Amber Igiede, a Baton Rouge, La., product, a matchup against her hometown team. The Tigers went 15-13 overall and 9-9 in Southeastern Conference play to finish seventh in the conference.

The Rainbow Wahine (22-6, 19-1 Big West) clinched the Big West championship with a five-set win at second-place UC Santa Barbara on Friday. They capped the regular season with a four-set win at Cal State Northridge on Saturday and returned to campus today prior to the selection show.

UH earned a spot in the NCAA Tournament for the 29th straight year (not counting the 2020 season when the Big West cancelled fall sports) and will make the program’s 40th appearance in the field.

The Wahine will face a Southeastern Conference team in the first round for the second straight year. UH defeated Mississippi State last year before ending the season against host Washington in the second round in Seattle.