Cougs ready for NCAA opener

Like many NCAA tournament hopefuls, the Washington State University volleyball team gathered to watch the selection show Sunday. After hearing half of the 64-team field, Cougars second-year coach Andrew Palileo started feeling antsy.

“I got a little nervous, because you always see good teams being left out,” he said.

Those feelings vanished when WSU’s pairing with Northern Iowa flashed on the TV screen. The obligatory high-fiving and screaming followed while Palileo proudly took in the scene.

“I thought about the older girls and what they have gone through,” Palileo said. “They have put in a lot of time, having gone through the coaching transition and fitting into a new system. They made a renewed commitment and stayed for nine weeks during the summer. That’s a lot of time and sacrifice and seeing the enjoyment on their faces … the reward more than made up for the sacrifice.”

Now that the Cougars (18-12) are back in the tournament for the first time since 2002, they plan on sticking around a while. It won’t be easy as No. 20 Northern Iowa (30-2) is riding a 28-match winning streak entering Friday’s 2:30 match at the Nebraska University Coliseum in Lincoln. No. 7 Nebraska faces Coastal Carolina in the other half of the bracket.

WSU struggled in the second half of the Pac-10 season. The Cougars were 5-4 after upsetting then-No. 4 Washington, but they dropped eight of their last nine to finish eighth. Still, Palileo figured WSU had done enough, after defeating Eastern Washington and Oregon State in the final weeks, to make the tournament. WSU beat four ranked opponents and 11 of its 12 losses were to top 20 teams.

The Cougars are one of eight Pac-10 teams in the tournament. No other conference had more than six.

Palileo said several factors contributed to WSU’s second-half slide. Injuries prevented Brittany Tillman and freshman Rachel Todorovich from practicing during the week. Opponents began taking WSU more seriously after the Cougars defeated No. 18 Arizona, No. 16 USC and No. 4 Washington.

“We were playing well, up until 21, 22 points,” Palileo said. “Those were the ones we were winning earlier in the year. We were still playing well. We just weren’t seeing the results.”

Palileo is well-versed on Northern Iowa from his tenure as coach at South Dakota State. His teams played the Panthers on occasion and went head-to-head for recruits.

“Our strength has always been about balance and playing good defense,” Palileo said. “If we continue to do that, we’re big enough to match their size. Really, it comes down to the patience of the hitters on both sides of the net.”