Miami Gardens, Fla. - For the third-consecutive year, a berth to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Women's Volleyball National Tournament Final Site will be decided on the campus of St. Thomas University as the Bobcats were named of the hosts of the Opening Round. STU will welcome Loyola University (La.) on Saturday, Nov. 22 with first serve set for 1:00 pm. 

The Bobcats earned a postseason home contest after going 25-4 during the 2025 campaign, claiming their fifth-straight Sun Conference Regular Season title behind a 13-1 league record before winning the conference tournament title for the fourth-straight year. St. Thomas boasts one of the most accurate offenses in the country, hitting .276 which ranks fourth in the NAIA while averaging 12.9 kills, 13.7 digs, 2.4 blocks and 1.8 service aces. 

2025 Sun Conference Freshman of the Year Raya Mlyakova paces the offense behind 2.80 kills, getting her feeds from Payton Bertke who averages 10.37 assists which ranks 10th in the country on top of a team-high 0.39 service aces. Aleksandra Ivanovic boasts a .426 hitting percentage which ranks second in the country, while Tayla Barnes sits 24t in the NAIA with 1.17 blocks per set and Fabiana Mucciola adds 4.11 digs. 

Loyola (29-8) makes the trip to Miami Gardens riding an eight-game winning streak that propelled the Wolfpack to the Southern States Athletic Conference (SSAC) Tournament Champions. The Wolfpack average 12.4 kills on a .223 clip with 14.6 digs, 2.6 service aces and 1.8 blocks. 

Samantha Guillotte leads five Wolves averaging over two kills per set with 2.53, followed by Isis Harink who chips in 2.40 kills alongside a team-best 0.89 blocks. Kala Emanuelli adds 4.89 digs while Belen Puche Laguna serves 0.65 aces.  

This will be the second matchup between the two sides, with Loyola prevailing 3-1 on Aug. 30, 2025.  

The winner of Saturday's postseason bout moves on to the NAIA Final Site, the Tyson Events Center in Sioux City, Iowa, with Pool Play set to begin on Dec. 3.