Initial look at the MIVA and MPSF quarterfinal matches

It took the final day of a four-month regular season to settle all the seeds, but the NCAA men’s volleyball postseason is finally upon us.

The MIVA and MPSF will begin their conference tournaments with the quarterfinals this weekend. Here is the initial look and the historical information to know about every conference tournament quarterfinals match before you fill out your bracket.

MPSF TOURNAMENT QUARTERFINALS

No. 1 seed USC (22-4, 18-4 MPSF) vs. No. 8 seed Cal State Northridge (12-17, 8-14 MPSF)
Match vitas: 7 p.m. Saturday in Los Angeles
Season series: USC leads 2-0 (won in three games in January and April)
Historical stats to know: It’s a good sign for USC that it’s hosting the NCAA Tournament — the last two years the team hosting the Final Four has reached the tournament by winning their conference tournament. Cal State Northridge since 1996 has twice won a road in the MPSF Tournament quarterfinals match.

No. 2 seed Stanford (20-6, 17-5 MPSF) vs. No. 7 seed Pepperdine (14-14, 9-13 MPSF)
Match vitals: 7 p.m. Saturday in Palo Alto, Calif.
Season series: Stanford leads 2-0 (won in four games in Feburary and five games in March)
Historical stats to know: The only time Stanford in its last eight MPSF Tournament appearances advanced beyond the quarterfinals was when it won the NCAA championship in 2010. Pepperdine in its last nine MPSF Tournament appearances has only once failed to advance beyond the opening round.

No. 3 seed BYU (23-6, 17-5 MPSF) vs. No. 6 seed Long Beach State (15-14, 10-12 MPSF)
Match vitals: 7 p.m. Saturday in Provo, Utah
Season series: Tied at 1-1 (BYU won in three games and Long Beach State won in five games in March)
Historical stats to know: BYU in the last seven years has lost two home postseason matches — both to UC Santa Barbara in the 2005 and 2011 MPSF Tournament quarterfinals. Long Beach State in the last 11 years has always won at least one match in the MPSF Tournament when it is the No. 7 seed or higher.

No. 4 seed UC Irvine (21-5, 17-5 MPSF) vs. No. 5 seed UCLA (22-7, 16-6 MPSF)
Match vitals: 7 p.m. Saturay in Irvine, Calif.
Season series: UC Irvine leads 2-1 (UC Irvine won in four games in January and five games in March, UCLA won in three games in March)
Historical stats to know: John Speraw since becoming the UC Irvine head coach in 2003 has never lost a home MPSF Tournament match. UCLA has not advanced beyond the MPSF Tournament quarterfinals since winning the 2006 national championship.

MIVA TOURNAMENT QUARTERFINALS

No. 1 seed Ohio State (19-8, 9-3 MIVA)
Bye until the MIVA Tournament semifinals
Historical stats to know: If Ohio State wins the MIVA Tournament it will become the first team to win five consecutive MIVA titles since Ball State in the 1960s. The Buckeyes have not lost a home match in the conference tournament since losing the 2007 MIVA championship match against IPFW.

No. 2 seed Lewis (23-6, 9-3 MIVA) vs. No. 7 seed Quincy (17-12, 1-11 MIVA)
Match vitals: 7 p.m. Friday in Romeoville, Ill.
Season series: Lewis leads 2-0 (won in three games in March and April)
Historical stats to know: Lewis has advanced to the MIVA Tournament semifinals all but one time since returning from its NCAA postseason ban in 2007. Quincy’s upset victory against Ball State in the MIVA Tournament quarterfinals last season was its first conference tournament victory in program history.

No. 3 seed Loyola (18-11, 8-4 MIVA) vs. No. 6 seed IPFW (13-14, 5-7 MIVA)
Match vitals: 7 p.m. Friday in Chicago
Season series: Tied at 1-1 (IPFW won in five games in February and Loyola won in four games in April)
Historical stats to know: Loyola has lost three MIVA Tournament home matches in program history — but two of three losses were against IPFW. The Mastodons have not won a postseason match since reaching the 2007 NCAA championship match.

No. 4 seed Grand Canyon (15-16, 5-7 MIVA) vs. No. 5 seed Ball State (12-11, 5-7 MIVA)
Match vitals: 7 p.m. Saturday in Phoenix, Ariz.
Season series: Tied at 1-1 (Grand Canyon won in three games and Ball State won in five games in March)
Historical stats to know: Grand Canyon has never won a postseason match but this is its first MIVA Tournament home match in program history. This is the first time since 2000 that Ball State will open the conference tournament on the road as the lower seed.