MOUNT VERNON – The expanded six-team Midwest Conference Volleyball Tournament is now down to four schools who will battle it out for an automatic NCAA berth this weekend in Cornell's Small Athletic and Wellness Center.
 
Cornell is the No. 1 seed and tournament host for the 14th consecutive year. Coach Jeff Meeker's Rams (15-9) open play Friday with a 7 p.m. semifinal against No. 4 Illinois College (14-11), which advanced with Tuesday's 3-0 quarterfinal win over Monmouth.
 
Friday's first semifinal pits No. 2 Lawrence (17-10) against No. 6 Lake Forest (12-13) at 4:30 p.m. Lake Forest upset No. 3 Grinnell, 3-0, on Tuesday.
 
The championship match is 1 p.m. Saturday. The winner qualifies for the NCAA Division III Tournament, which begins with regional play Nov. 19-21.
 
Fans can follow the tournament action via live video and live stats.
 
The Rams won their 14th consecutive MWC regular-season title with a perfect 9-0 record. Against this weekend's field, Cornell scored 3-1 wins over both Illinois College and Lawrence, and outlasted Lake Forest, 3-2.
 
Cornell is seeking its sixth straight MWC Tournament title, and 12th overall. The Rams are 23-2 in MWC Tournament matches since 2012.
 
The Rams are 10-1 on their home court this fall. They roll into the postseason having won 13 of their last 15 matches.
 
The team ranks 13th nationally in blocks per set (2.25). Junior Ally Olmstead is the MWC leader in blocks (1.10 bps) and stands third in hitting percentage (.291). Sophomore Selia Stein ranks second in hitting (.305) and fourth in blocks (0.92 bps).
 
The Rams feature one of the league's top liberos in senior Kensie Staats, who enters second in digs (4.41 dps) and aces (45).  
 
Illinois College returns to the tournament for the eighth straight year. Lawrence reached last year's championship match, falling 3-1 to Cornell. Lake Forest is making its first tournament appearance since 2023.
 
The last non-Cornell team to win the MWC Tournament was Grinnell in 2019.