SIOUX CITY, Iowa – For the College of Saint Mary volleyball team, the time is now.

The Flames begin postseason play Saturday night in the quarterfinal round of the Great Plains Athletic Conference Volleyball Tournament. CSM (16-13, 7-9 GPAC) earned the eighth seed and will travel to Orange City to face top-seeded Northwestern College (27-0, 16-0), the No. 1 team in the country, at 7:30 p.m.

In their regular-season meeting in Omaha, Northwestern swept the Flames 25-19, 25-18, 25-21.

The other quarterfinals on Saturday have fifth-seeded Hastings (14-11, 8-8) at fourth-seeded Morningside (22-9, 10-6) at 7 p.m., sixth-seeded Dordt (14-15, 8-8) at third-seeded Midland (16-10, 12-4) at 7 p.m., and seventh-seeded Dakota Wesleyan (13-15, 7-9) at second-seeded Concordia (22-2, 15-1) at 5 p.m.

GPAC tiebreakers (head-to-head matches) were used to seed the tournament. 

Northwestern will receive the GPAC regular-season automatic berth to the NAIA National Women's Volleyball Championship as the No. 1 seed. The GPAC Volleyball Tournament winner (runner-up if Northwestern wins) also receives an automatic berth to the NAIA National Volleyball Championship. 

The 2024 NAIA Volleyball National Championship includes a field of 48 teams, and CSM has made 12 appearances in the national tournament. All 48 teams will play in opening-round matches played on campus sites nationwide on Nov. 23. The opening-round winners will play at the final site for a 24-team pool play NAIA National Championship Dec. 4-10, in Sioux City at the Tyson Events Center.

GPAC Volleyball Quarterfinals - Saturday, Nov. 9

#8 College of Saint Mary at #1 Northwestern, 7:30 p.m.

#5 Hastings at #4 Morningside, 7 p.m.

#6 Dordt at #3 Midland, 7 p.m.

#7 Dakota Wesleyan at #2 Concordia, 5 p.m.

GPAC Volleyball Semifinals - Wednesday, Nov. 13

Highest Seed Hosts

#4/#5 Winner vs. #1/#8 Winner, TBA

#3/#6 Winner vs. #2/#7 Winner, TBA

GPAC Volleyball Championship - Saturday, Nov. 16

Semifinal Winners, At Highest Seed, TBA