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The University of St. Thomas women's volleyball team will face Iowa State in the first round of the NCAA tournament on Friday.
It's the first NCAA playoff appearance for the Tommies since moving from Division III to compete with larger schools in Division I a few years ago.
They landed a spot in the playoffs after winning the Summit League Championship against the South Dakota State Jackrabbits.
Head Coach Thanh Pham is impressed by how hard his team worked all season, a team that includes nine seniors who have shared the common goal of landing a spot since they started together.
“We had our goals laid out and again, just taking it one day at a time and working on improvements and just trying to find little areas that we could make better, I think that kinda helped us get to where we're at. Did I think it was possible? Absolutely. I wouldn't say I would think it was likely though,” Pham said.
Morgan Kealy from River Falls is a junior at St. Thomas studying exercise science. She has been playing since she was a kid and is now a setter for the Tommies. She said the excitement of playing in the prestigious tournament hasn’t set in.
“I know we’re the very first volleyball team to, you know, go to the NCAA tournament, but knowing like we’re the very first team from St. Thomas to be able to go, that’s just something that is so special,” Kealy said.
After St. Thomas’ move to Division I, there was a probation period while they went to the reclassification process that limited the school from playing in postseason or playoffs. The school became a full Division I member in June 2025. Pham said it is an honor for volleyball to be the first team eligible to play.
“I know this win is just for volleyball, but I feel like it's bigger for our St. Thomas community. I think that there's a lot of great things going on at St. Thomas,” he said.
Four years ago, the volleyball team was 4-23. Last year, the team took third in the regular season conference. This year, they finished 21-9. Pham credits their constant commitment to what he calls their constant mantra of “1 percent improvement every day.”
“We got a lot better in four years with the same group of players,” he said. “We really, truly like who’s on our team, and we continue to believe in them, and they continue to believe in us.”
Pham said in the coming days before the start of the tournament, the team will keep their focus on staying consistent in all aspects of their game, continuing to manage their emotions and thoughts and reminding his players of the joy of volleyball as they bring the intensity.
For Kealy, she’ll be fine-tuning her game and continuing to lean on her teammates, many of whom are her close friends and roommates. Their connection as a team on and off the court sets them apart from other teams as they enter the national tournament, she said.
“We don’t need to completely change who we are to get our first NCAA Tournament when we just need to be the best version of ourselves,” Kealy said.
The University of Minnesota will also be playing in the tournament. The Gophers face off against Fairfield on Friday, also in Minneapolis. The winners of those two matches play each other on Saturday.
The NCAA tournament is single-elimination for all rounds. A total of 64 teams will play in the first round starting Thursday.
St. Thomas is one of 31 teams that earned automatic bids to the tournament as conference champions, and the NCAA DI women's volleyball committee selected 33 other teams as at-large selections.
The national championship will be on Dec. 21 in Kansas City, Mo.
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