The Mid-American Conference women's volleyball tournament is the postseason single-elimination tournament for the NCAA Division I Mid-American Conference (MAC). The winner of the tournament receives the MAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Division I women's volleyball tournament. Since 2021, the top six teams in conference play qualify for the tournament. The tournament was typically hosted by the regular season champion, though it has also been held at neutral sites including Battle Creek, Michigan (1990-93), the SeaGate Centre in Toledo, Ohio (2005-10), and Geneva, Ohio (2011-13). Starting in 2025, the regular-season champion from the prior season was named the host of that year's tournament, resulting in Bowling Green hosting the 2025 tournament, while Ball State will host in 2026 as the 2025 regular season champions.
Format On May 12, 2020, the MAC announced a series of changes to its competitive format in multiple sports in response to fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic; these changes took effect in the 2020–21 school year and were planned to last through at least 2023–24.
In the first MAC Volleyball Tournament in 1980, there was no regular season conference play, so all nine teams went to the tournament and were split into two pools, with the 'Pool A' winner playing the 'Pool B' runner-up in one semifinal with the 'Pool B' winner facing the 'Pool A' runner-up in the other. Starting in 1982, that format was abandoned as regular-season play was introduced, with only the top four teams in conference play going to the tournament.
In 1983, the conference stopped having a tournament until 1986, with the regular-season champion earning the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Division I women's volleyball tournament. In 1987, postseason play returned with the top four teams entering the tournament.
From 1997-2002 and 2011-2019, the tournament involved the top eight teams in the conference standings. From 2003-2010 all teams in the conference made the tournament. For the 2020 season, played in spring 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, only the top four teams made the tournament, and since the fall 2021 season it has been a six-team tournament with the top two seeds getting a bye to the semifinals while lower seeds play in a quarterfinal round.
Teams are seeded by conference record using a series of specified tiebreakers when necessary.
Yearly results
Year Champion Score Runner-up Tournament MVP Location1980 Miami3-2 Central Michigan none DeKalb, Illinois1981 Miami3-1 Central Michigan none Mount Pleasant, Michigan1982(3) Western Michigan3-0(2) Central Michigan none Athens, Ohio1983-86No Tournament1987(1) Western Michigan3-0(2) Bowling Green none Kalamazoo, Michigan1988(1) Western Michigan3-0(3) Eastern Michigan none1989(2) Western Michigan3-2(1) Bowling Green Joanne Bingham, Western MichiganBowling Green, Ohio1990(1) Miami3-2(2) Eastern Michigan Angel Miller, MiamiBattle Creek, Michigan1991(1) Bowling Green 3-0(2) Miami Tammy Schiller, Bowling Green1992(2) Ball State 3-2(1) Bowling GreenApril Hoeltke, Ball State1993(1) Ball State3-1(2) Bowling GreenCassy Herode, Ball State1994(1) Ball State3-2(3) Miami Carin Zielinski, Ball StateMuncie, Indiana1995(3) Ball State3-2(1) Miami Wendy Carter, Ball StateOxford, Ohio1996(1) Miami3-0(3) Kent State Jessica Stout, Miami1997(2) Northern Illinois3-1(1) MiamiBeth Burkholder, Northern Illinois1998(1) Miami3-0(3) Northern Illinois Alissia Thompson, Miami1999(1) Ball State3-0(2) Western MichiganEmily Sallee, Ball StateMuncie, Indiana2000(1) Western Michigan3-1(2) Ball StateZakiya Pope, Western MichiganKalamazoo, Michigan2001(1) Northern Illinois3-0(3) Ball StateJenny Bowman, Northern IllinoisDeKalb, Illinois2002(1) Ball State 3-0(4) Eastern MichiganKatie Butts, Ball StateMuncie, Indiana2003(1) Ohio 3-0(7) MarshallLaura Hageman, Ohio2004(1) Ohio3-0(3) MarshallBriana Adamovsky, OhioBowling Green, Ohio2005(1) Ohio3-0(3) Ball StateSavanah Parra, OhioSeaGate Centre2006(1) Ohio3-0(3) Bowling GreenMelissa Griffin, Ohio2007 (3) Miami 3-0 (1) Ohio Carli Reihman, Miami2008(2) Ohio3-1(1) Western Michigan Ellen Herman, Ohio2009(1) Ohio3-1(2) Western Michigan Sarah Petrulis, Ohio2010(2) Ohio3-0(4) Northern Illinois Sue Jacobi, Ohio2011(6) Central Michigan3-2(1) Northern Illinois Kaitlin Schultz, Central MichiganGeneva, Ohio2012(2) Bowling Green3-2(4) Northern Illinois Paige Penrod, Bowling Green2013(1) Ohio3-0(7) Eastern Michigan Meredith Ashy, Ohio2014(5) Western Michigan3-2(1) Ohio Lexie Pawlik, Western MichiganConvocation Center (Ohio)2015(2) Ohio3-0(1) Northern Illinois Abby Gilleland, Ohio2016(2) Northern Illinois3-0(1) Miami Mary Grace Kelly, Northern IllinoisConvocation Center (NIU)2017(1) Miami3-0(6) Western Michigan Olivia Rusek, MiamiMillett Hall2018(5) Eastern Michigan3-2(2) Miami Cassie Haut, Eastern Michigan2019(4) Ball State3-2(3) Bowling Green Kia Holder, Ball StateStroh Center2020 (played spring 2021)(1) Bowling Green3-1(2) Western Michigan Katelyn Meyer, Bowling Green2021 (fall)(1) Ball State3-2(2) Bowling Green Natalie Risi, Ball StateWorthen Arena2022(2) Bowling Green3-2(1) Ball State Lauryn Hovey, Bowling Green2023(1) Western Michigan3-2(6) Bowling Green Logan Case, Western MichiganUniversity Arena (WMU)2024(4) Western Michigan3-0(3) Ball State Logan Case, Western MichiganStroh Center2025 (4) Toledo 3–1 (2) Western Michigan Jessica Costlow, Toledo2026Worthen Arena
Performance by school School Tenure Championships Championship years 1980–present 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2015 1980–present 1982, *1983, *1984, *1985, *1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 2000, 2014, 2023, 2024 1980–present 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1999, 2002, 2019, 2021 1980–present 1980, 1981, 1990, 1996, 1998, 2007, 2017 1981–present 1991, 2012, 2020, 2022 Northern Illinois 1997, 2001, 2016 1980–present 2011 1980–present 2018 1980–present 2025 1992–present — — 1980–present — Marshall — *There was no MAC Tournament from 1983-86. The regular season champion received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament
Former conference members shaded in ██ silver
See also Mid-American Conference men's basketball tournament Mid-American Conference women's basketball tournament
References