Despite a four-set loss to defending NCAA champion Loyola in Friday’s Midwest Intercollegiate Volleyball Association tournament final, the Lewis men earned the top seed and a first-round bye in next week’s six-team NCAA Tournament at Stanford.
Loyola got the third seed after avenging two regular-season losses to Lewis by winning a third straight MIVA tourney title.
Lewis (26-3), ranked No. 1 in the most recent AVCA national poll, opens Thursday in the semifinals against the winner of Tuesday’s match between 4th-seeded Hawaii and 5th-seeded Penn State.
The Ramblers (25-2) meet No. 6 seed Pfeiffer Tuesday. The winner plays No. 2 seed UC Irvine.
Loyola, playing at home, beat Stanford for the 2014 title.
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