GNAC Women's Volleyball Tournament to Get Underway on Tuesday Evening

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TOURNAMENT CENTRAL

WINTHROP, Mass. – The Great Northeast Athletic Conference women's volleyball regular-season wrapped up on Saturday, as the pairings are now set for the 2018 GNAC Tournament. Top-seeded and No. 2 nationally-ranked Johnson & Wales University, second-seeded Rivier University, third-seeded Colby-Sawyer College and fourth-seeded Lasell College will all host quarterfinal playoff contests on Tuesday evening.

JWU will welcome eighth-seeded Saint Joseph's College of Maine at 7:30 PM, while the three other quarterfinals will get underway at 7:00 PM, including fifth-seeded Suffolk University traveling to Lasell. The winners of each match will square off in Thursday night's semifinals on November 1.

Colby-Sawyer will host sixth-seeded Simmons University, while Rivier prepares for seventh-seeded Emmanuel College. Both winners will also meet in the semis on Thursday evening. The highest remaining seed will host the cconference final on Saturday, November 3. 

Be sure to catch all of the tournament action live on thegnac.tv or watch on one of our four custom digital streaming apps (broadcasts are produced by host institutions). Fans can also purchase GNAC co-branded and championship apparel through the conference's partnership with SquadLocker. For more information, please click HERE. 

JWU, which hosted and won the regional last fall en route to an NCAA Division III Elite Eight appearance, has won the last three GNAC Championships under head coach Nancy Somera. Prior to that, Rivier won five GNAC titles in an eight-year span from 2007-14. 

The impressive autumn for Colby-Sawyer continues in the Chargers' first-ever season as a full core GNAC member. The Chargers' men's soccer, field hockey and now women's volleyball programs have all earned the right to host 2018 GNAC playoff contests, while its women's soccer team also made the conference tournament. Colby-Sawyer women's tennis also captured the GNAC Championship last weekend. 

Tuesday, October 30 - Quarterfinals
Game 1: #8 Saint Joseph's of Maine at #1 Johnson & Wales - 7:30 PM
Game 2: #5 Suffolk at #4 Lasell - 7:00 PM 
Game 3: #6 Simmons at #3 Colby-Sawyer  - 7:00 PM
Game 4: #7 Emmanuel at #2 Rivier - 7:00 PM 

Thursday, November 1 - Semifinals (at higher seeds)
Game 5: 4/5 winner vs. 1/8 winner
Game 6: 3/6 winner vs. 2/7 winner 

Saturday, November 3 - Championship 
Game 7: at highest remaining seed

The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 13 member institutions and over 3,000 student-athletes across the New England region. Founded in 1995, the GNAC annually sponsors and administers 20 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunity and community involvement in an effort to enhance the student-athlete experience. 

– #TheGNAC –