MT. CARMEL, Ill. -- Wabash Valley is seeded seventh overall and will receive a first-round bye in the upcoming NJCAA women's Division I national basketball tournament.
The 24-team field was announced by the NJCAA on Sunday night. A total of 16 district champions will join eight at-large selections for the tournament from Mar. 22-27 at the Rip Griffin Center in Lubbock, Texas.
The 30-1 Lady Warriors, champions of the Midwest District, will play at 8 p.m. on Thursday, Mar. 23 against the winner of a Wednesday game between No. 10 seed Collin, Texas. (29-2) and 23rd-seed Cochise, Ariz. (27-5).
Luke Scheidecker's club is making its' seventh consecutive appearance in the national tournament, though the event itself was cancelled in 2020 due to COVID.
"It's always nice to be honored and get a bye in the first round," said Scheidecker, while adding this caveat: "Having a bye does not guarantee anything with most of the top seeds losing last year."
In last year's upset-riddled tourney No. 17 seed Tyler, Texas emerged as the national champion with a 92-80 win over Georgia Highlands. Six of the eight top seeds lost in the second round.
With their first Lubbock game still ten days away, the Lady Warriors have ample time to prepare, albeit for either of two opponents, not just one.
"The first few days we will just worry about us and getting better ourselves and then as we get closer, we'll start preparing for both teams," Scheidecker said.
A long layoff does have its' advantages though.
"It gives us a chance to get healthy, and get our legs back under us," he said. "We just have to come out sharp."
This will be Wabash Valley's 10th trip to the national tournament, all since 2002, when a Stephanie Smith coached WVC team first played in the tourney, then held in Salina, Kan.
South Georgia Tech (32-1) is the overall No. 1 seed, followed by Eastern Florida State (32-1), a potential Lady Warrior opponent in the quarterfinals.
Also landing first-round byes, in seed order: No. 3 Trinity Valley, Texas (31-2), Southern Idaho (29-2), Blinn, Texas (30-3), Jones, Miss. (25-3), then WVC followed by No. 8 seed Northwest Florida State (25-4).
Two Lady Warrior opponents from this season also made the field: No. 17 seed Moberly Area (28-3), who WVC defeated, 91-74, on Dec. 11 in St. Louis, and 22nd seed Three Rivers (22-5), the lone team to defeat WVC this year, 91-79, on Nov. 5, a loss avenged on Jan. 7, 91-75, at Spencer Sports Center in the NJCAA Game of the Week on ESPN+.