It’ll be Omaha or bust for Nebraska volleyball once again in 2022. The NCAA announced on Wednesday that the NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball Championship is returning to Omaha, Dec. 15-17, 2022. The University of Nebraska and the Metropolitan Entertainment & Convention Authority (MECA) will host the championship at the CHI Health Center Omaha.
“This is awesome news for Omaha, the state of Nebraska and volleyball fans across the country,” Nebraska coach John Cook said in a statement. “Omaha has served as a fantastic host in the past, and the way they’ve embraced this championship is unmatched by any other city in America.
“The atmosphere and support in Omaha is what every college volleyball player deserves when they are pursuing a national championship. There are always huge crowds when Omaha hosts, and I have no doubt tickets will sell out fast. This will be a great experience for players, coaches and fans, and the University of Nebraska is excited to be a part of it.”
Omaha has previously hosted the event in 2006, 2008 and 2015. The city was also scheduled to host the 2020 NCAA Championship this December, but that has since been postponed until April 23-25, 2021, due to COVID-19. The NCAA has not yet announced if Omaha will remain the host for the championship this spring, although Cook is hopeful.
“I’ve heard Omaha is good to go,” Cook said in late September. “I’ve been checking in with them to make sure with all these date changes. Omaha’s good to go, it wants it, it works out for them. I think the NCAA has indicated that it would like to have it in Omaha. I’ve seen the bracket for 48 teams — it’s a little bit different, not everybody’s going to be playing the first match, the first night. They’ll have some bye teams. How they’re going to do that and where they’re going to do that has not been figured out yet.
“If you follow the NCAA, they’re going to be meeting to talk about how they want to do this.”
The Nebraska volleyball team has reached the NCAA Semifinals every time the event has been held in Omaha. The Huskers won the national title in two of those: 2006 and 2015.
The NCAA also announced the locations for the championships from 2023–2025. Here’s what the next few years look like:
- 2022 – Omaha, Nebraska (CHI Health Center Omaha, Dec. 15-17)
- 2023 – Tampa, Florida (Amalie Arena)
- 2024 – Louisville, Kentucky (KFC YUM! Center)
- 2025 – Kansas City, Missouri (T-Mobile Center)
The 2021 championship, previously scheduled, will take place in Columbus, Ohio.
