NCAA Des Moines regional
Friday: Gophers vs. Illinois, 5 p.m.; Penn State vs. Hawaii, 7:30 p.m. (both streamed on ESPN3)
Saturday: Regional final at 5:30 p.m. (ESPNU); winner advances to next week's Final Four in Omaha
Where: Wells Fargo Arena
Live stats and updates: www.gophersports.com
Gophers update: For the first time since 2010 — and the third time in school history — the Gophers (28-4) swept their first- and second-round opponents to make the Sweet 16. The No. 2 overall seed in the tournament, the Gophers played Illinois once in the regular season and came back from a 2-1 deficit to win in five.
Illinois update: The No. 21 Illini (21-12) swept Southern Illinois and defeated Louisville 3-1 to advance to the regional semifinals for the seventh time in the past eight seasons. Senior outside hitter Jocelynn Birks is the program's career leader in kills and attacks, with 1,926 kills in 5,534 attempts.
Penn State update: The two-time defending NCAA champions, the No. 8 Nittany Lions (28-5) are on a 14-match winning streak in the NCAA tournament dating to the 2012 semifinals. The team is hitting .297, tops in the Big Ten and fifth in Division I, and three of its players were named to the all-Big Ten team.
Hawaii update: A five-set win over TCU and a sweep of Texas A&M in the first and second rounds extended the win streak of Hawaii (28-1) to 23 matches. The Rainbow Wahine is led by Big West Conference player of the year Nikki Taylor, a junior outside hitter who led the league with 4.36 kills per set.
RACHEL BLOUNT
