# 1996 NCAA Division I women's volleyball tournament

The 1996 NCAA Division I women's volleyball tournament began with 48 teams and ended on December 21, 1996, when Stanford defeated Hawaiʻi 3 games to 0 in the NCAA championship match.
Stanford's win over Hawaiʻi for the title was, and remains, one of the most lopsided finals in NCAA championship history. Stanford won 15-7, 15-3, 15-5. The 15 points scored by Hawaiʻi was the lowest in an NCAA championship match since the NCAA tournament began in 1981.

## Play-in games

| November 27 | November 27 | November 27 |
| | Coastal Carolina (BSC, 26-6) | 3 |
| | Chattanooga (SoCon, 26-10) | 0 |
| November 27 | November 27 | November 27 |
| | Hofstra (A-East, 18-18) | 3 |
| | Siena (MAAC, 21-8) | 1 |
| November 29 | November 29 | November 29 |
| | SE Missouri St. (OVC, 27-7) | 3 |
| | Valparaiso (Mid-Cont., 26-8) | 1 |
| n/a | n/a | n/a |
| | UCF (TAAC, 21-12) | 3 |
| | Florida A&M (MEAC, 14-13) | 0 |
| n/a | n/a | n/a |
| | Sam Houston (SLC, 24-14) | 3 |
| | Grambling State (SWAC, ?) | 0 |
| n/a | n/a | n/a |
| | Colgate (Patriot, 27-6) | 3 |
| | Rider (Northeast, 16-12) | 0 |

## Records

Pacific Regional :
| School | Conference | Berth Type | Record |
| Cal State Northridge | Big Sky | Automatic | 22-10 |
| Colorado State | WAC | At-large | 22-10 |
| Houston | Conference USA | At-large | 24-7 |
| Kansas State | Big 12 | At-large | 25-8 |
| Loyola Marymount | West Coast | Automatic | 25-2 |
| Northern Illinois | Midwestern Collegiate | Automatic | 27-7 |
| South Florida | Conference USA | Automatic | 27-4 |
| Southeast Missouri State | Ohio Valley | Automatic | 28-7 |
| Stanford | Pac-10 | Automatic | 26-2 |
| UC Santa Barbara | Big West | At-large | 22-8 |
| USC | Pac-10 | At-large | 19-8 |
| Washington State | Pac-10 | At-large | 25-5 |
East Regional :
| School | Conference | Berth Type | Record |
| Arkansas | SEC | At-large | 24-10 |
| Brown | Ivy League | Automatic | 20-13 |
| Coastal Carolina | Big South | Automatic | 27-6 |
| Colgate | Patriot | Automatic | 28-6 |
| George Mason | CAA | Automatic | 26-2 |
| Georgia Tech | ACC | At-large | 31-7 |
| Louisville | Conference USA | At-large | 24-4 |
| Maryland | ACC | Automatic | 26-4 |
| Nebraska | Big 12 | Automatic | 27-3 |
| Penn State | Big Ten | Auto (shared) | 29-2 |
| Rhode Island | Atlantic 10 | Automatic | 31-6 |
| Wisconsin | Big Ten | At-large | 23-7 |
Mountain Regional :
| School | Conference | Berth Type | Record |
| Arizona | Pac-10 | At-large | 19-9 |
| BYU | WAC | Automatic | 25-6 |
| Colorado | Big 12 | At-large | 18-9 |
| Hawaii | WAC | At-large | 31-2 |
| Oral Roberts | Independent | At-large | 27-4 |
| Pacific | Big West | At-large | 25-6 |
| Sam Houston State | Southland | Automatic | 25-14 |
| San Diego | West Coast | At-large | 22-7 |
| San Diego State | WAC | At-large | 21-10 |
| Texas | Big 12 | At-large | 22-6 |
| Texas Tech | Big 12 | At-large | 25-8 |
| Washington | Pac-10 | At-large | 22-7 |
Central Regional :
| School | Conference | Berth Type | Record |
| Ark.-Little Rock | Sun Belt | Automatic | 29-7 |
| Florida | SEC | Automatic | 34-1 |
| Hofstra | America East | Automatic | 19-18 |
| Illinois State | Missouri Valley | Automatic | 28-7 |
| Long Beach State | Big West | Automatic | 32-2 |
| Miami (OH) | Mid-American | Automatic | 24-6 |
| Michigan State | Big Ten | Auto (shared) | 24-6 |
| Minnesota | Big Ten | At-large | 23-10 |
| Notre Dame | Big East | Automatic | 21-11 |
| Ohio State | Big Ten | At-large | 26-5 |
| Texas A&M | Big 12 | At-large | 24-7 |
| UCF | Trans America | Automatic | 23-12 |

## Brackets
### Pacific regional

| First round | First round | Second round | Second round | Second round | Regional semifinal | Regional semifinal | Regional semifinal | Regional Final | Regional Final | Regional Final |
| Houston | 0 | | | | | | | | | |
| Colorado State | 3 | | | | | | | | | |
| Colorado State | 3 | 1 | Stanford | 3 | | | | | | |
| | | | Colorado State | 0 | | | | | | |
| | | | | | 1 | Stanford | 3 | | | |
| | | | | | | Southern California | 0 | | | |
| | | | Southern California | 3 | | | | | | |
| | | 4 | South Florida | 1 | | | | | | |
| Southern California | 3 | 4 | South Florida | 1 | | | | | | |
| SE Missouri State | 0 | | | | | | | | | |
| SE Missouri State | 0 | | | | | | | 1 | Stanford | 3 |
| | | | | | | | | 2 | Washington State | 0 |
| UCSB | 3 | | | | | | | | | | 2 | Washington State | 0 |
| Northern Illinois | 2 | | | | | | | | | |
| Northern Illinois | 2 | 3 | Loyola Marymount | 3 | | | | | | |
| | | | UCSB | 1 | | | | | | |
| | | | | | 3 | Loyola Marymount | 1 | | | |
| | | | | | 2 | Washington State | 3 | | | |
| | | | Kansas State | 0 | | | | | | |
| | | 2 | Washington State | 3 | | | | | | |
| Cal St. Northridge | 1 | 2 | Washington State | 3 | | | | | | |
| Kansas State | 3 | | | | | | | | | |

### East regional

| First round | First round | Second round | Second round | Second round | Regional semifinal | Regional semifinal | Regional semifinal | Regional Final | Regional Final | Regional Final |
| Rhode Island | 2 | | | | | | | | | |
| Arkansas | 3 | | | | | | | | | |
| Arkansas | 3 | 1 | Nebraska | 3 | | | | | | |
| | | | Arkansas | 1 | | | | | | |
| | | | | | 1 | Nebraska | 3 | | | |
| | | | | | | Louisville | 0 | | | |
| | | | Louisville | 3 | | | | | | |
| | | 4 | Maryland | 1 | | | | | | |
| Louisville | 3 | 4 | Maryland | 1 | | | | | | |
| Brown | 0 | | | | | | | | | |
| Brown | 0 | | | | | | | 1 | Nebraska | 3 |
| | | | | | | | | 2 | Penn State | 2 |
| Wisconsin | 3 | | | | | | | | | | 2 | Penn State | 2 |
| Colgate | 0 | | | | | | | | | |
| Colgate | 0 | 3 | George Mason | 1 | | | | | | |
| | | | Wisconsin | 3 | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | Wisconsin | 0 | | | |
| | | | | | 2 | Penn State | 3 | | | |
| | | | Georgia Tech | 0 | | | | | | |
| | | 2 | Penn State | 3 | | | | | | |
| Coastal Carolina | 0 | 2 | Penn State | 3 | | | | | | |
| Georgia Tech | 3 | | | | | | | | | |

### Mountain regional

| First round | First round | Second round | Second round | Second round | Regional semifinal | Regional semifinal | Regional semifinal | Regional Final | Regional Final | Regional Final |
| Colorado | 3 | | | | | | | | | |
| Oral Roberts | 1 | | | | | | | | | |
| Oral Roberts | 1 | 1 | Hawaiʻi | 3 | | | | | | |
| | | | Colorado | 0 | | | | | | |
| | | | | | 1 | Hawaiʻi | 3 | | | |
| | | | | | 4 | Texas | 1 | | | |
| | | | San Diego State | 0 | | | | | | |
| | | 4 | Texas | 3 | | | | | | |
| San Diego State | 3 | 4 | Texas | 3 | | | | | | |
| Sam Houston State | 0 | | | | | | | | | |
| Sam Houston State | 0 | | | | | | | 1 | Hawaiʻi | 3 |
| | | | | | | | | 3 | BYU | 0 |
| Washington | 3 | | | | | | | | | | 3 | BYU | 0 |
| Texas Tech | 0 | | | | | | | | | |
| Texas Tech | 0 | 3 | BYU | 3 | | | | | | |
| | | | Washington | 1 | | | | | | |
| | | | | | 3 | BYU | 3 | | | |
| | | | | | 2 | Pacific | 2 | | | |
| | | | Arizona | 1 | | | | | | |
| | | 2 | Pacific | 3 | | | | | | |
| San Diego | 2 | 2 | Pacific | 3 | | | | | | |
| Arizona | 3 | | | | | | | | | |

### Central regional

| First round | First round | Second round | Second round | Second round | Regional semifinal | Regional semifinal | Regional semifinal | Regional Final | Regional Final | Regional Final |
| Illinois State | 3 | | | | | | | | | |
| Miami (Oh.) | 1 | | | | | | | | | |
| Miami (Oh.) | 1 | 1 | Florida | 3 | | | | | | |
| | | | Illinois State | 0 | | | | | | |
| | | | | | 1 | Florida | 3 | | | |
| | | | | | 4 | Ohio State | 2 | | | |
| | | | Notre Dame | 2 | | | | | | |
| | | 4 | Ohio State | 3 | | | | | | |
| Notre Dame | 3 | 4 | Ohio State | 3 | | | | | | |
| Hofstra | 0 | | | | | | | | | |
| Hofstra | 0 | | | | | | | 1 | Florida | 3 |
| | | | | | | | | 3 | Michigan State | 1 |
| Texas A&M | 3 | | | | | | | | | | 3 | Michigan State | 1 |
| Arkansas-Little Rock | 0 | | | | | | | | | |
| Arkansas-Little Rock | 0 | 3 | Michigan State | 3 | | | | | | |
| | | | Texas A&M | 0 | | | | | | |
| | | | | | 3 | Michigan State | 3 | | | |
| | | | | | 2 | Long Beach State | 1 | | | |
| | | | Minnesota | 0 | | | | | | |
| | | 2 | Long Beach State | 3 | | | | | | |
| Central Florida | 2 | 2 | Long Beach State | 3 | | | | | | |
| Minnesota | 3 | | | | | | | | | |

## Final Four - CSU Convocation Center, Cleveland, Ohio

| National semifinals | National semifinals | National semifinals | National Championship | National Championship | National Championship |
| 1 | Stanford | 3 | | | |
| 1 | Nebraska | 1 | | | |
| 1 | Nebraska | 1 | 1 | Stanford | 3 |
| | | | 1 | Hawaiʻi | 0 |
| 1 | Hawaiʻi | 3 | 1 | Hawaiʻi | 0 |
| 1 | Florida | 0 | | | |