INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – The Saginaw Valley State University volleyball team is set to battle this upcoming weekend at the fifth annual Mizuno GLVC/GLIAC Crossover Volleyball Tournament, the nation's largest collegiate volleyball tournament, will be held at the Great Lakes Center in Aurora, Ill. on Oct. 12-13, 2012.
The tournament consists of three matches over a two-day span with the Cardinals competing in one match on Friday (Oct. 12) and two matches on Saturday (Oct. 13).
Saginaw Valley will kickoff the Crossover on Friday with a repeat matchup against the University of Illinois at Springfield Prairie Stars, whom the Cardinals defeated 3-0 back on Sep. 8 at the St. Joseph's Puma Invitational. Start time is slated for 3:30 PM EST.
On Saturday, the Cardinals are scheduled to face-off against the Quincy University Hawks in the first session at 11:00 AM before finishing the Crossover event with a tilt against the Panthers of Drury University at 5:00 PM.
The Cardinals enter the tournament with an overall mark of 8-10 and 4-5 in the conference. Historically, SVSU is 8-4 in four years of Crossover action since its inception back in 2008.
The two-day tournament will feature 48 matches conducted on eight courts at one of the top volleyball facilities in the country. The event, designed to increase competition between teams from the two leagues in the NCAA Division II Midwest Region, has previously been held in Indianapolis, Ind. and Lansing, Mich.
"The Great Lakes Valley Conference could not be more proud to partner with the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference to stage yet another Mizuno GLVC/GLIAC Crossover Volleyball Tournament that is the largest volleyball tournament in the country," said GLVC Commissioner Jim Naumovich. "In the four-year history of the event, the Crossover has proven to not only showcase some of the nation's top volleyball, but also embrace the regionalization philosophy that is emphasized as part of the NCAA Division II Strategic Positioning Platform."
The GLVC and GLIAC are two of the premier NCAA Division II conferences in the country and feature strong volleyball programs. Each conference currently boasts one team in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division II Coaches Top 25 Poll, as Indianapolis paces the GLVC in ninth, while the GLIAC's Ferris State rates 21st overall.
For more information, log on to the event's official website, GLVCsports.com/2012crossover.