Bubble Watch

     With only 1 match remaining in the Hokies’ regular season, it’s time to take a look at Tech’s NCAA Tournament resume.  Losses on the road last weekend at Wake Forest and Duke certainly hurt, but the Hokies still have a chance to receive their first ever tournament bid.  Here’s a quick look at Tech’s resume before the Hokies’ regular season finale versus UVA on Friday:

Virginia Tech Hokies

Overall record:	18-11
Conference record:	9-10 ACC (t-8th)
Non-conference record:	9-1
Road record:	5-8
Last 10:	5-5
RPI:	40
Notable wins (RPI):	Duke (12), Florida State (25), at Western Kentucky (31), vs. Missouri (41)
Bad losses (RPI 150+):	none
vs. RPI Top 25:	2-6
vs. RPI 26-50:	2-0
vs. RPI 51-100:	6-5
vs. RPI 100+:	8-0

     The NCAA volleyball tournament field is made up of 31 automatic qualifiers and 33 at-large bids.  As of Monday, 24 of the automatic bids have been determined.  Of the 7 remaining, only two conferences (the WAC and the MVC) have the potential to steal an at-large bid from the field.  I’m considering teams that are RPI Top-50 AND receiving votes in the AVCA Coaches' Poll as locks for at-large bids at this point.  Here’s the breakdown:

Total at-large bids:	33
Locks:	21
Bubble spots:	12

     Depending on the outcomes of the WAC and MVC tournaments, the number of bubble spots available could fall to as little as 10.  Of the teams on the bubble, Virginia Tech has the 6th best RPI ranking. That's a fair measure of where the Hokies stand, but keep in mind other factors such as conference record and late season performance are considered.

Rooting Guide

ACC matches: Root for these teams to win in ACC matches this week.  Tech can pass all three of these teams in the standings with a win over UVA and the following results:

• Duke over Wake Forest  (11/23)
• Boston College over Maryland (11/24)
• Clemson over Georgia Tech (11/26)

Conference Tournaments: Root for these teams to win the following conference tournaments.  Each of these teams would likely receive an at-large bid if they don’t win their tournament.

Western Athletic Conference Tournament (Nov. 22-24)
	No. 1 seed Hawai’i
	Championship game will be on ESPNU on Wednesday (11/24) at 9:30pm Eastern

Missouri Valley Conference Tournament (Nov. 25-27)
	No. 1 seed Northern Iowa, No. 2 seed Wichita State, or No. 4 seed Missouri State