The No. 4 Nebraska volleyball team (23-6, 15-5 Big Ten) will open the NCAA Tournament at home for the ninth straight season on Thursday night when it hosts the University of Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks (28-5) at the NU Coliseum. The match is set to start at 7 p.m., or 30 minutes after the first match of the day ends between Kansas State and Northern Iowa.
 
Nebraska, which recently finished in a tie for second in the Big Ten Conference, will be making its 31st appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
 
UMES will be making its second appearance in the national tournament after repeating as Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Champions in 2012. The Hawks went earned the conference title after defeating Florida A&M in five sets on Nov. 18.
 
Thursday night’s match will be the first-ever meeting between Nebraska and Maryland Eastern Shore. It will be the third time the Huskers have ever played a team from the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.