OXFORD, Ohio - The Miami University volleyball team is in the postseason for the third straight year as it competes in the National Invitational Volleyball Championship. On Thursday, the RedHawks host Northern Kentucky in a first round match at 8 p.m. With a win, Miami will take on the winner of Valparaiso vs. Ball State in a second round match at 7 p.m. The matches will take place inside Millett Hall and will be livestreamed on RedHawks All-Access for those who have a subscription.

POSTSEASON HISTORY: This is 11th time Miami has participated in a postseason volleyball tournament. That includes three NIVC bids, seven NCAA appearances and one spot in the 1980 MAIAW Tournament that was the national tournament before the NCAA took over women's sports in 1981.

NIVC HISTORY: Prior to being reborn as a 32-team single elimination tournament in 2017, the NIVC existed from 1989-95 as a 20-team event. In those years all 20 teams went to one location where they were placed into four 5-school pods for round robin play. The winners of each pod advanced to the semifinals of the event. To win, teams had to play six matches in only three days.
In its first appearance in 1991, which was played at Wright State, Miami went 4-0 to win its pool. It earned victories over UNC-Asheville, Kansas, Hofstra and Northern Arizona. The Red and White went on to drop a hard-fought semifinal match to Notre Dame (10-15, 15-12, 6-15, 10-15).

Miami's other appearance came in 1994. It went 2-2 in pool play, falling to San Diego and South Carolina, then rebounding to defeat Delaware and Northern Illinois. ABOUT NORTHERN KENTUCKY: The Norse finished the regular season 21-9 overall and were third in the Horizon League with an 11-5 record. In their last action they made a run all the way to the Horizon League Tournament Championship match, defeating Wright State (3-2) in the quarterfinals and Cleveland State (3-0) in the semifinals before falling to Green Bay (0-3) in the final. While it is a very young team with only four upperclassmen, its best player is its only senior, outside hitter Haley Libs. She has 463 kills, an average of 3.92 kills per set, and 460 digs, an average of 3.90 digs per set.

SERIES WITH NORSE: Miami holds a 7-6 record in the all-time series with Northern Kentucky. The teams last met at Miami's Best Western Sycamore Inn Invitational on Sept. 18, 2015. The RedHawks cruised to a 3-0 (25-17, 25-8, 25-23) win in that match. Olivia Rusek led Miami with 11 kills.

ABOUT VALPARAISO: The Crusaders finished the regular season 25-10 and finished fourth in the Missouri Valley with an 11-7 record. Last week at the MVC Tournament, they defeated host Missouri State, 3-2, on Thursday, but fell to top seed and eventual winner Northern Iowa, 1-3, on Friday. Valparaiso features a very balanced offense with four different players averaging more than two kills per set. Tops among them is senior outside hitter Katherine Carlson with 370 kills, an average of 2.80 kills per set.

SERIES WITH CRUSADERS: The series between Miami and Valparaiso is tied at three wins apiece. The last meeting came on Sept. 15, 2012 in Bloomington, Indiana with the Crusaders earning a 3-0 (26-24, 25-18, 25-22) win. Meg Riley had a triple-double with 11 kills, 18 assists and 12 digs in that match.

ABOUT BALL STATE: The Cardinals finished the regular season at 22-9 and were third in the MAC with a 12-4 record. At the MAC Tournament, they knocked off Ohio in the quarterfinals, 3-2, but then were eliminated by Miami, 2-3, in the semifinals. A senior laden team, Ball State's top offensive player is senior outside hitter Ellie Dunn. She has 424 kills, an average of 3.77 per set. The Cardinals also have one of the top setters in the MAC in junior Amber Seaman. The sister of Miami's Morgan Seaman, Amber averages a league-leading 10.32 assists per set.

SERIES WITH CARDINALS: Ball State holds a 40-38 lead in the all-time series with Miami. The RedHawks have won four straight against the Cardinals however, including both meetings this season. It started on Oct. 19 in Oxford with a dramatic 3-2 (19-25, 25-23, 28-30, 25-18, 18-16) come from behind victory. Senior middle hitter Courtney Simons had a career-high 16 kills in the win. The comeback was even greater on Nov. 17 in the MAC Semifinals in Oxford. Down 0-2, Miami rallied for a 3-2 (22-25, 25-27, 25-23, 26-24, 15-5) win to advance to the championship match. Freshman outside hitter Sophie Riemersma had one of the best single-match performances in school history, finishing with 29 kills, 17 digs, six service aces, two blocks and a .426 attack percentage. She scored an unbelievable 36.5 points for the 'Hawks in the contest.