PROVIDENCE, R.I. – A pair of teams have earned byes through the first round of the upcoming 2019 American Athletic Conference Women’s Volleyball Championship after winning division titles during the regular season. Cincinnati laid claim to the top record in the East Division along with the tournament’s top overall seed, while SMU was victorious in the West Division to earn the No. 2 seed in the championship bracket that was finalized on Sunday.
 
The American Athletic Conference Women’s Volleyball Championship, scheduled for Nov. 22-24 at The Venue in Orlando, Florida, features six teams competing in a single-elimination format. With Cincinnati (24-5, 15-1) and SMU (18-8, 11-5) already through to the semifinals, the other four seeds are set to meet in the first round of play on Nov. 22. No. 6 seed Tulsa (15-14, 8-8) is slated to face No. 3 seed and tournament host UCF (21-7, 14-2) at 3:30 p.m. (ET) before No. 5 seed Tulane (20-9, 10-6) and No. 4 seed Houston (16-15, 10-6) square off at 6 p.m. The semifinal round matches are scheduled for 1 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. on Nov. 23, with the conference championship match on tap for 1:30 p.m. on Nov. 24.
 
Both semifinal matches will air live on Facebook via the American Digital Network, while the championship contest will be available live on ESPNU.
 
Cincinnati was victorious in its final 10 matches of the regular season, winning nine straight contests in The American to secure the East Division title and top tournament seed. The Bearcats previously won conference tournament crowns as a member of Conference USA in 1999 and the Big East in 2011.
 
Cincinnati will meet the winner of Tulane and Houston in the second semifinal contest on Nov. 23. Both the Green Wave and Cougars were in a three-way tie for first place in the West Division entering the final match of the regular season, but a sweep of Houston by SMU and a Tulane loss at Memphis clinched the division title for SMU. Houston earned second place in the West Division and the fourth overall seed ahead of Tulane via tiebreaker.
 
SMU will collide with the UCF-Tulsa winner to open the semifinal round on Nov. 23. The Mustangs, who won back-to-back regular-season titles in The American in 2015 and 2016, are looking to become the first conference squad to secure three automatic bids to the NCAA Championship. UCF earned the right to host the inaugural American volleyball tournament by way of a perfect 18-0 conference record in 2018, claiming its second regular-season title as a member of the league (2014).
 
Live coverage will be available throughout the championship at TheAmerican.org/Volleyball and on the conference’s social media platforms: @American_Vball on Twitter and American_Conf on Facebook.
 
2019 American Athletic Conference Volleyball Championship
Hosted by UCF
 
Friday, Nov. 22 – First Round
American Digital Network
Match 1: No. 6 Tulsa vs. No. 3 UCF – 3:30 p.m. ET
Match 2: No. 5 Tulane vs. No. 4 Houston – 6 p.m. ET
 
Saturday, Nov. 23 – Semifinals
American Digital Network
Match 3: Winner Match 1 vs. No. 2 SMU – 1 p.m. ET
Match 4: Winner Match 2 vs. No. 1 Cincinnati – 3:30 p.m. ET
 
Sunday, Nov. 24 – Final
ESPNU
Match 5: Winner Semifinal 1 vs. Winner Semifinal 2 – 1:30 p.m. ET