WICHITA, Kan. – The Drake volleyball team accepted an automatic berth into the 2022 National Invitational Volleyball Championship and will take on Weber State in the opening round on the campus of Wichita State inside Charles Koch Arena on Sunday, Dec. 4 at 1 p.m. CT. 
 
The winner of the Drake-Weber State match will play the winner of Wichita State and Grand Canyon on Monday, Dec. 5 in the second round.
 
Drake last appeared in the NIVC during the 2018 season. The Bulldogs set a program record in wins with a 26-7 record during the 2022 campaign following a narrow five-set loss to UNI in the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament championship match.

The 2022 NIVC features 32 teams. The first and second rounds are scheduled for Dec. 1-5, with round three scheduled for Dec. 6-8. The semifinals will be held Dec. 8-11, and the championship match will be played Dec. 12 or 13.
 
This is the fifth edition of the NIVC since its reboot through Triple Crown Sports, as the event previously ran from 1989-95. Previous champions of the renewed NIVC are UNLV (2021), Georgia Tech (2019), Iowa State (2018) and Ole Miss (2017).