The University of Arkansas at Little Rock’s volleyball team will continue its amazing season when the team makes its first NCAA Tournament appearance in more than a decade at 6:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 5, in Topeka, Kansas.

The team will face No. 16 seed Kansas at the Kansas Expocentre. Kansas has posted a 22-8 record this season.

If UALR advances to the second round, it will play the winner of Oregon State and Creighton matchup. A win in this round will give them a berth to the Sweet 16 in Ames, Iowa.

Prior to this season, the Trojans volleyball team made the NCAA Tournament four times in program history in 1996, 1997, 1998, and 2000.

UALR earned its spot in the NCAA Tournament with a sweep of Texas State in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament championship game on Nov. 29. The Trojans blew through the conference tournament, claiming wins in nine consecutive sets.

The team currently holds the nation’s longest winning streak at 24 matches and finished the Sun Belt regular-season schedule with a perfect 20-0 record, the first in conference history.

Three members of the squad were named to the All-Sun Belt First Team, Edina Begic, Edina Selimovic, and Sonja Milanovic, and Milanovic and Megan Mathis earned All-Tournament Team honors.

Begic was named the Offensive Player of the Year for the third straight year and landed the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player award.

Van Compton was named Coach of the Year.

The team also excels academically. Six Trojans were honored for academic achievement, and brought home an award for boasting a team grade point average of at least 3.0.

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