LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) – The UNLV volleyball team will return to postseason play for the second straight season after it earned a bid to the Women's National Invitational Volleyball Championship Sunday. The Rebels will make the program's first trip to South Dakota to face the Kansas City Roos in the first round of competition Thursday at 4:30 pm CT (2:30 pm PT) at the Sanford Coyote Sports Center in Vermillion.
 
The South Dakota Coyotes and Central Michigan Chippewas round out the four-team field participating in Vermillion, and will play each other Thursday night at 7:00 pm CT (5:00 pm PT). The winners of the two First Round matches will meet Friday afternoon at 2:00 pm CT (12:00 pm PT) in the Second Round.
 
This will be the second consecutive year that the Scarlet & Gray has participated in the NIVC. The Rebels advanced to the 2018 semifinals, but lost in four sets to eventual champion Iowa State at Hilton Coliseum in Ames, Iowa. In all, UNLV went 3-1 in the NIVC last year, defeating UC Irvine (3-0) and Fresno State (3-2) in Las Vegas before knocking off Portland, 3-1, in the third round before its trip to the Midwest.
 
The Rebels sit 19-10 overall and finished third in the Mountain West standings with a 15-3 conference mark. After starting the year 4-9, which included an 0-2 start in MW play, UNLV rattled off a 15-1 run and a six-match win streak to conclude the regular season.
 
Thursday's meeting with Kansas City will mark the second straight year that the Rebels and Roos have squared off on a neutral court after the pair served it up at Saint Louis' 2018 Billiken Invitational in Saint Louis. UNLV wound up taking the five-set thriller on Sept. 15 at SLU's Chaifetz Pavilion and, subsequently, pushed its record in the all-time series to 3-0, which dates back to 1999.
 
MOUNTAIN WEST SENDS FOUR TO POSTSEASON PLAY:
In addition to UNLV, Boise State and Wyoming will represent the MW in the NIVC; however, the Broncos and Cowgirls could face each other in the second round of tournament play Friday, seeing as both are playing in Laramie, Wyoming this week (Dec. 5-6). Colorado State, which is No. 11 in the latest AVCA Top 25 Poll, is the lone MW squad in the NCAA Tournament, and will face South Carolina in Seattle Friday.
 
SCOUTING THE FIRST & SECOND ROUND OPPOSITION:
- UNLV is 3-0 all-time against Kansas City, and has never faced Central Michigan nor South Dakota in the program's history.
- The first two meetings between UNLV and Kansas City took place in Las Vegas on Sept. 3, 1999 (3-0 win) and Oct. 24, 2010 (3-1 win) before the two played in Saint Louis on Sept. 15 last year (3-2 win).
- UNLV is the only program of the four playing in South Dakota to enter this week's action on a winning note. Central Michigan (Mid-American Conference), Kansas City (Western Athletic Conference) and South Dakota (Summit League) all suffered losses in the semifinals of their respective conference tournaments.
- Kansas City sits 17-11 overall and concluded WAC play in third place (12-4). The Roos have lost two of their last three matches; however, they had won five straight before this current stretch.
- South Dakota sits 27-2 overall and won the Summit League title behind a perfect 16-0 mark. The Coyotes had won 24 straight before their 3-1, upset loss to No. 4 seed Omaha at the conference tournament in Denver on Nov. 23.
- Central Michigan sits 21-8 overall and concluded MAC play in third place (11-5). The Chippewas enter the week having lost four of their last five and five of their last eight outings.
 
NIVC TOURNAMENT FIELD:
- The tournament field consists of a total of 32 teams, with eight sites comprised of four teams apiece.
- The first and second rounds will be held Dec. 5-7, with the third round slated for Dec. 9-12, and the semifinals Dec. 13-15. The NIVC championship match will be held either Dec. 16, 17 or 18.
- The South Dakota bracket is paired with the UT Arlington bracket, which consists of UT Arlington, UT San Antonio, Sam Houston State and Houston.
 
REBEL NOTES:
- UNLV finished third in the Mountain West behind conference champion Colorado State (18-0) and runner-up Wyoming (16-2). The third-place finish was the best by a Rebel squad since the 2016 edition also took third behind a 12-6 showing.
- UNLV's 19 wins are the eighth most by a team in program history and only trail 2014's 26; 2007 and 2014's 24; 1984 and 1998's 23; 2018's 22; and 2006's 20.
- UNLV's 15-1 record in its last 16 matches is only one shy of tying the 16-1 stretch posted by the 2016 edition for the stretch with the most wins with only one loss.
- UNLV junior middle blocker Macy Smith began her collegiate career in the state of South Dakota, playing her freshman campaign for South Dakota State in 2017 before joining the Rebels in 2018. Smith's Jackrabbits went 0-2 against the USD Coyotes in Summit League competition; however, the Spirit Lake, Iowa native posted a season-high nine kills off .444 hitting (9-1-18) with three total blocks and two digs in the second meeting (Nov. 7).